Firefighter dies battling blaze at illegal Jakarta dumpsite as waste crisis deepens

Garbage trucks line up near mounds of waste covered with protective sheeting on Aug. 2 at the Bantar Gebang Integrated Waste Management Site in Bekasi, West Java. The Jakarta administration began gradually implementing a controlled landfill system at the facility on Aug. 1 as part of its plan to phase out open dumping, aiming to improve waste management while reducing the risk of fires and foul odors. - Jakarta Post/ANN

JAKARTA: The death of a firefighter while battling a blaze at an illegal dumpsite near Jakarta's largest wholesale market in Kramat Jati, East Jakarta, has renewed concerns over the capital's persistent waste management crisis.

According to the Jakarta Fire and Rescue Agency, the fire broke out on Saturday morning at a plot of land that had been illegally used as a dumpsite for months. The blaze quickly spread through piles of garbage reaching up to six metres high.