Malaysia is considering sending helicopters and water-bombing aircraft to help Indonesia fight forest fires that have shrouded the region in thick haze, Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan said in a report by NST.
He said senior officials from both countries are working out the details before the plan goes to the cabinet for approval. The Foreign Ministry secretary-general, the National Disaster Management Agency (Nadma) director-general and the National Security Council director-general are holding talks with their Indonesian counterparts.
Speaking to reporters after closing the 10th national conference of Persatuan Solidariti Nasional (PerSoNa) in Ayer Keroh, Melaka, on 18 Oct, he said the fires were burning deep in the interior, far from any road, while the smoke had cut visibility to below 50m, Malay Mail noted.
“Aircraft cannot fly because the haze is extremely thick, with visibility of less than 50m,” he said. “The Air Pollutant Index in Kalimantan has also reached 1,000, indicating an extremely severe situation.”
Trucks and heavy equipment cannot reach the flames either. “It is difficult to send trucks or other equipment because the fires are deep in the interior,” he said, leaving aerial firefighting as the main option. Mohamad said a Japanese team sent earlier to help could not continue and has returned home.
He said any Malaysian mission would put crew safety first. “We have to be careful. We cannot force pilots to fly in dangerous conditions. We will not do that,” he said.
Water-bombing aircraft scoop water from lakes, rivers or the sea and drop it over burning ground. The work depends on clear visibility and a water source close to the fire line, conditions the Kalimantan interior does not currently offer.
On 16 Oct, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said Malaysia stood ready to assist Indonesia after President Prabowo Subianto agreed to accept offers of help from neighbouring countries.
Indonesia has been battling widespread forest and peatland fires that have sent smoke across parts of Southeast Asia. Jakarta has agreed to take in international assistance and is assessing what neighbouring countries can provide.
Mohamad said Malaysia cannot stay quiet while the fires affect the whole region, but he repeated that no crew would be pushed into a flight the haze makes unsafe. The aid package still needs cabinet approval before any aircraft leaves, and no timeline has been set for the talks or for that decision.
