August 23, 2026 | 03:15 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) reported 696 hotspots have emerged in South Kalimantan Province, based on updated data on Sunday, August 23, with the majority noted high risks of wildfire and fire intensity.
Fitma Surya Arghani, a weather forecaster at the Syamsudin Noor Class I Meteorological Station in Banjarbaru, said on Sunday that of the 696 hotspots, 45 are at low levels, 622 at moderate levels, and 29 at high levels.
BMKG shows that the Fire Weather Index (FWI) evaluation for South Kalimantan is dominated by high indicators, or the red zone, indicating the level of fire intensity and the risk of forest and land fires.
"Based on coordinate and administrative location data, the distribution of the main hotspots includes Banjar Regency with 127 hotspots, South Hulu Sungai (115 hotspots), Tapin (104 hotspots), North Hulu Sungai (65 hotspots), Tanah Laut (58 hotspots), Central Hulu Sungai (48 hotspots), and Kotabaru (46 hotspots)," said Fitma.
Fitma added that 33 hotspots were detected in Balangan and Tanah Bumbu Regencies, 28 hotspots in Banjarbaru City, 21 hotspots in Barito Kuala Regency, and 18 hotspots in Tabalong Regency.
BMKG classifies the level of certainty of hotspot phenomena into three categories: level 7, or low, signaling an early indication of rising surface temperatures; level 8, or moderate, which dominates reports; and level 9, or high, indicating a very high certainty of forest fires.
Level 9 hotspots were detected in Karang Intan, South Daha, North Batang Alai, South Tapin, and West Laut Island, while level 8 hotspots dominated the overall data.
BMKG reported that several tools were used in the hotspot detection, including the VIIRS and MODIS sensors on the NOAA20, S-NPP, TERRA, and AQUA polar satellites to identify temperature anomalies compared to surrounding areas through day and night observations. However, hotspots could not be detected in cloud-covered areas or blank zones.
As of August 21, 2026, the Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD) data shows that the number of forest fires in the province amounted to 1,651, with an estimated burned area of 6,905.67 hectares.
Read: Indonesia Sees Nearly 600% Surge in Wildfire Hotspots per July
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