Japan Wildfire: Strong Winds Fuel Blaze, Hundreds of Hectares Burned

March 28, 2025 | 07:06 am

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The prefectures in western Japan, Okayama and Ehime, have been experiencing a wildfire that has been expanding since Sunday evening, March 23, 2025. This has forced thousands of residents to evacuate. The government of Japan is collaborating with the Japan Self-Defense Forces (SDF) in firefighting. A state of alert is still in place to prevent further fires.

Strong Winds

As quoted from Antara, the uncontrollable wildfires in the two western prefectures of Japan were worsened by strong winds on Wednesday, March 26, 2025. By Tuesday, March 25, 2025, the fire had already burned more than 214 hectares.

Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has instructed relevant agencies to prevent the spread of fires and safely evacuate residents. Ehime Governor Tokihiro Nakamura stated that the situation is still dangerous.

Hundreds of Hectares Burnt

In Ehime, the wildfire in Imabari City has destroyed at least 306 hectares. In Okayama, another fire has burned 311 hectares of land. Another wildfire occurred in Miyazaki on Tuesday, March 25, 2025. The extent of the fire until Wednesday, March 26, has reached over 600 hectares.

Extinguishing the Fire

The prefectural governments of Okayama and Ehime have requested the SDF to assist in firefighting, particularly using helicopters to spray water onto the burning areas.

A total of 14 helicopters are conducting aerial firefighting operations at various fire points. Additionally, the local government is using 15 fire trucks to try to control the flames.

The firefighting helicopters operate from the air to reduce the spread of fires that are difficult for ground crews to reach. Firefighting began Sunday night and continued into Monday morning, March 24, 2025.

Power Outages

This wildfire has affected the infrastructure around the occurrence area. Some sections of the nearby toll roads in Imabari City had to be temporarily closed. Power was also cut to several homes in the affected areas to assist in the firefighting efforts and to avoid potential short circuits caused by the fire.

Ofunato

A major fire occurred in Ofunato, Iwate Prefecture, in northeastern Japan at the end of February. Approximately 3,000 hectares of land in the city were burned, and the fire was eventually extinguished after 12 days. This event became the largest fire in Japan in recent years.

Ananda Ridho Sulistya also contributed to the writing of this article.

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