Wooden houses are pictured as smoke covers trees due to the forest fires near Banjarmasin in South Kalimantan province, Indonesia, September 29, 2019. - Reuters
JAKARTA, Feb 22 (Reuters): Indonesian President Joko Widodo said on Monday local authorities should get prepared for potential forest fires later this year as hot spots had been detected on the island of Sumatra.
The South-East Asian country has suffered some of the biggest tropical forest fires outside the Amazon and Congo in recent years, putting at risk endangered animals like orangutans and tigers and sending choking haze across the region. "Ninety-nine percent of forest fires are perpetrated by humans, whether intentional or out of negligence," Jokowi, as the president is widely know, said in a virtual meeting with officials.
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