Banjarbaru, South Kalimantan (ANTARA) – Indonesian Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka pledged Thursday to provide personal protective equipment to volunteers fighting forest and land fires in South Kalimantan.
Gibran made the pledge during a working visit after university students raised concerns about severe shortages of safety equipment among civilian firefighters.
During a dialogue, students urged the government to prioritize field volunteers’ welfare while pursuing long-term measures to address the province’s recurring annual fires.
Gibran expressed appreciation for volunteers’ efforts and said the government would provide protective equipment to help safeguard them while they work on the front lines.
He ordered local authorities to immediately compile comprehensive data, including names and addresses, of volunteers lacking adequate equipment to ensure assistance reaches the intended recipients.
To prevent overlapping duties and improve coordination, Gibran instructed volunteers to work closely with local administrations and the Regional Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD).
Gibran also directed National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) Chief Suharyanto to help streamline volunteer data collection, protective-equipment distribution and task assignments.
He said BPBDs had mapped fire hotspots and affected areas, allowing authorities to divide firefighting responsibilities and deploy volunteers more effectively.
Gibran stressed that volunteers should coordinate with local BPBDs so they could be assigned to specific areas and avoid duplication during firefighting operations.
He called for all available resources to be maximized to accelerate firefighting, highlighting volunteers’ continuing role in tackling forest and land fires across South Kalimantan.
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Translator: Tumpal Aritonang, Uyu Liman
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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