REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, PEKANBARU -- Two fire fighting Russian helicopters will remain in the Riau province of Indonesia though the integrated Riau Haze Disaster Mitigation operation ended on Friday, a spokesman said.

"The Kamov and Sikorsky helicopters will remain in Riau to help extinguish fires at the remaining hot spots," the Riau Haze Disaster Mitigation Task Force's spokesman, Colonel Bernardus Robert, said here Thursday.

The two helicopters, leased by the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) to shore up efforts to fight forest and bush fires in Riau, had dropped 7,600 liters of water to extinguish flames across the burning land swathes in Dumai and Bengkalis districts.

The Riau Haze Disaster Mitigation Task Force reported that there were still 10 hot spots in Bengkalis District and one in Rokan Hilir District while 241 hot spots spread across 21,902 hectares of land had been put out.

The haze disaster had hit various parts of Riau Province over the past three months and affected activities and health of more than 55 thousand people there.

As for elements allegedly behind these fires, 109 people had been named as suspects and 93 of them had been detained, spokesman of the Indonesian National Police Senior Commissioner, Agus Rianto, said.

Ikuti Whatsapp Channel Republika