The number of hotspots detected in Riau province jumped by nearby 20 times to 1,234 on Monday, scattered across eight regencies/cities, according to the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG).
Ardhitama, a BMKG Pekanbaru analyst, said that the the Terra and Aqua Satellite detected 1,398 hotspots in total across Sumatra.
“All were detected this morning,” he said as quoted by Antara news agency.
Ardhitama explained that of the hotspots in Riau, 525 were in Bengkalis regency, 209 in Siak, 141 in Meranti, 126 in Dumai city, 118 in Pelalawan, 74 in Indragiri Hilir, 48 in Rokan Hilir and four in Indragiri Hulu.
Other hotspots were detected on Monday in Riau Islands (43), Jambi (25), West Sumatra (5), Lampung and Belitung with one hotspot each.
Meanwhile, according to the United States’ National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), hotspots were also detected in a number of neighboring countries, including Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia and Laos.
