Wildfires raging in northern Sarawak

Lee (centre) with the fires raging in the background.

MIRI: Wildfires are raging in a forested area the size of at least 100 football fields in the Kuala Baram district in northern Sarawak Wednesday.

The Miri Fire and Rescue Department has initiated aerial water bombing efforts using a helicopter to douse the flames, which span an area approximately 40ha wide.

Sarawak assistant communications minister Datuk Lee Kim Shin visited the site and ordered an integrated approach involving various agencies and private companies to tackle the fire.

He said efforts were being taken to raise the level of the underground water table to prevent the fire from burning into the ground.

Investigations are underway to determine how the fires started, he said.

At least 82 firefighters, volunteers and workers of Naim Cendera, the company that owns the land, are battling the flames, he said.