Pekanbaru (ANTARA) – Eleven regions in Riau Province have declared a forest and land fire emergency alert status to strengthen mitigation efforts and improve coordination among local, provincial, and central authorities ahead of the dry season.Jim Gafur, Head of the Emergency and Logistics Division of the Riau Regional Disaster Management and Firefighting Agency (BPBD Damkar), stated that in addition to the district and city governments, the Riau Provincial Government (Pemprov) has also declared an emergency alert status for forest and land fires.”Currently, the Riau Provincial Government and 11 district and city governments in Riau have declared an emergency alert status for forest and land fires. Only one region, Kuansing, has not yet declared one,” he said in Pekanbaru on Monday.Gafur said the emergency alert status is expected to facilitate coordination between central, provincial, and regional authorities in responding to forest and land fires. Therefore, he hopes the Kuansing Regency Government (Pemkab) will also declare an emergency alert status for forest and land fires.”Once the status has been declared, coordination and aid delivery will be easier, thus expediting forest and land fire management. We hope Kuansing will also determine the status soon,” he said.The Manggala Agni Team from the Sumatra Forest Fire Control Center (Dalkarhut) continues to conduct firefighting operations in several areas in Riau Province, including Rokan Hilir, Pelalawan, and Siak.Meanwhile, the fire in Pasir Limau Kapas was declared extinguished after five days of intensive firefighting efforts.Ferdian Krisnanto, Head of the Sumatra Dalkarhut Center, stated that field conditions still present various challenges, ranging from strong winds and dry, flammable vegetation to the characteristics of the peatland, which complicate the extinguishing process.”The Manggala Agni Team continues to work optimally at all fire locations. Despite facing quite challenging weather conditions and difficult terrain, personnel remain focused on extinguishing hotspots and conducting cooling operations,” Krisnanto said.