Indonesia Gives Tabalong $613,000 for Forest Fire Response
Indonesia allocates Tabalong about $613,000 for wildfire response as fires affect three districts and crews coordinate field operations.
TANJUNG, Indonesia — Indonesia’s government has allocated 10 billion rupiah (about $613,000) to help Tabalong district respond to forest and land fires, a growing operational challenge for crews working across three districts in South Kalimantan. The funding is intended to cover field needs, including fuel, meals for volunteers and supporting equipment.
Tabalong Regent Muhammad Noor Rifani said the district would coordinate with its disaster agency and volunteer teams to determine how the money should be used. The assistance comes as local officials report fires affecting forest areas and other land, with agencies presenting different estimates based on their respective records.
Funding to support crews in the field
The assistance was confirmed during a national coordination meeting on accelerating regional financial access in Jakarta. The district government’s statement, cited by Indonesia’s ANTARA news agency, said confirmation came on Oct. 23, 2026. Reports differed on the weekday, so the date is stated without one.
“This assistance is a trust that we will make the best possible use of to support fire-response operations in Tabalong district,” Noor Rifani said, according to ANTARA.
The district plans to use the funding for fuel, meals for volunteers, operational costs and supporting facilities. Officials have not specified which equipment they may buy. Coordination with the district disaster-management agency, known as BPBD, and the volunteer group Unit Penanggulangan Bencana Swadaya, or UPBS, is expected to help match spending to needs reported by field teams.
That support has direct implications for response work: fuel can help crews reach fire locations, while food and other provisions can sustain volunteers on duty. The district has not released a detailed spending plan, leaving the eventual allocation dependent on its assessment with BPBD and UPBS.
Different agencies report separate fire totals
Aries Setiawan, head of forest protection at the Tabalong Forest Management Unit, said about 140 hectares of protected forest, production forest and other-use areas had been affected. The affected areas are in Bintang Ara, Muara Uya and Jaro districts.
Forest protection teams and BPBD personnel are also handling a fire in Salikung village, in Muara Uya. The site is among the locations where crews are working as the district prepares to map operational requirements and volunteer support.
Separately, data from BPBD’s operations center cited by ANTARA recorded 194 fire incidents and about 507 hectares of land burned. The figures cover different reporting scopes: the forest management unit’s estimate concerns affected forest areas, while BPBD’s tally covers incidents and burned land. They should not be treated as interchangeable totals.
Tabalong’s funding decision follows reports of fires across several districts and land types. How the aid is divided will shape the practical support available to crews and volunteers responding at locations such as Salikung.
