Antara News·Indonesia·Friday, August 21, 2026 at 04:35 PM

RI reaffirms accelerated response to NTT quake, Kalimantan wildfires

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Arnidhya Nur, Raka Adji

S Tangerang, Banten (ANTARA) - Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto reaffirmed the Indonesian government's commitment to monitoring progress and accelerating response efforts following the recent earthquake in East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) and ongoing wildfires in Kalimantan.

Airlangga told the press in South Tangerang, Banten, on Friday that relevant ministers have visited and monitored the developments at the sites.

The minister previously noted that the forest and land fires in Kalimantan are disrupting local economic activity.

“There is an economic impact in the region because business operations are disrupted. Action must be taken to tackle these forest and land fires,” he stressed.

He stated that the Indonesian government is currently prioritizing fire suppression efforts, particularly as Indonesia is currently facing the El Niño weather phenomenon, which heightens fire risks due to drier conditions.

To tackle the situation, the government has deployed 12,880 joint personnel across Kalimantan and expanded water sources by drilling and activating wells in high-priority zones.

These intensified measures are focused on West Kalimantan, Central Kalimantan, and South Kalimantan, combining routine patrols, hotspot monitoring, direct firefighting, peatland rewetting, and cooling operations to prevent re-ignition.

Earlier, Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa stated that the government has disbursed Rp44 billion (around US$2.49 million) to support disaster response efforts in earthquake-hit areas across NTT, drawn from emergency relief funds transferred by the central government to local authorities in early August 2026.

Purbaya added that the government remains open to allocating additional funds based on ongoing evaluations of conditions on the ground and budget adequacy.

A magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck NTT on Saturday morning (August 15). The death toll reached 83 as of Friday (August 21), according to the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB).

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