Landfill in Indonesia’s Semarang catches fire again, with blaze spreading across three zones
The Jatibarang landfill in Semarang, Indonesia, caught fire again on 30 September, with flames spreading across three zones. Firefighters deployed seven vehicles and about 50 personnel, but high methane levels initially prevented them from directly attacking the blaze.
INDONESIA: The Jatibarang landfill in Semarang, Central Java, Indonesia, caught fire again on Wednesday evening (30 September), just a day after firefighters extinguished an earlier blaze at the site.
The latest fire began at about 6pm and initially affected Zone 1 before spreading to Zones 2 and 3, Semarang Fire and Rescue Service official Tantri Pradono told local media.
Firefighters deployed seven vehicles and about 50 personnel to the site, with water supplied by several agencies and organisations.
High methane levels hamper firefighting
The affected areas cover about 8.43 hectares across Zones 1 and 2 and another 3.8 hectares in Zone 3, according to Tantri.
However, firefighters initially held back from directly tackling the flames because of high levels of methane gas from the waste.
Instead, crews worked to contain the fire and prevent it from spreading to other parts of the landfill.
An excavator was also deployed to break up the waste piles as firefighters continued efforts to control the blaze, detikJateng reported.
The fire was still being dealt with on Wednesday evening, with authorities restricting access to people who were not involved in the response.
Second fire in three days
The latest blaze came shortly after another fire broke out at Jatibarang on Monday night (28 September).
That fire started in Zone 3 at about 10.20pm and affected around 1,000 square metres. Seven firefighting vehicles and about 40 personnel were deployed, with heavy machinery used to expose hot spots buried within the waste.
The fire was declared extinguished after cooling operations were completed on Tuesday (29 September), although firefighters continued monitoring smoke and remaining hot spots.
The cause of that earlier fire had not been established, according to fire officials cited by detikJateng.
Jatibarang has experienced major fires before
The latest incidents are not the first significant fires at Jatibarang.
In September 2023, a fire spread across about five hectares in two areas of the landfill.
Firefighters initially worked to contain the flames and temporarily halted waste-loading activities at the site.
Another major fire broke out in October 2023, with flames spreading through Zone 3.
Around 10 firefighting vehicles were deployed, while firefighters faced difficulties caused by the landfill's terrain and narrow access roads. All waste pickers trapped at the site were eventually evacuated.
Firefighters used multiple methods during the October 2023 incident, including water spraying, water injection and helicopter water-bombing.
The blaze was eventually extinguished after several days of firefighting and monitoring.
