Task force needs 10 days to douse Sumatra fires

Regional effort: A Malaysian CL415 Bombardier amphibious aircraft preparing to take off from Talang Betutu air force base in Palembang, Sumatra to help Indonesia combat forest fires. — AFP

JAKARTA: The multinational task force helping Indonesia to put out fires in South Sumatra has met with some success, but it will take about 10 days before the flames can be largely extinguished, said a minister.

“We will not be able to contain the fires unless we have three to four days of heavy rain,” said Indonesian Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs Luhut Pandjaitan at a briefing on the haze crisis on Monday.