Forest / Wild Fire - Indonesia, Province of Central Java, [Mount Merapi]

 

 

 

 

 

INDONESIA BURNING

 

Millions Of Acres Of Irreplaceable Forest Reduced To Ash... More Than 100,000 Fires Since August... Damage To Nation's Economy Estimated Near $50 Billion... Neighbouring Countries Blanketed In Smoke... Blazing Peat From Palm Oil Burn-Off Causing 'Carbon Bomb'

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Forest / Wild Fire

Indonesia

Province of Central Java, [Mount Merapi]

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Forest / Wild Fire in Indonesia on Monday, 02 November, 2015 at 03:56 (03:56 AM) UTC.

Description About 200 climbers are trapped were reported trapped after forest fire in Selo District sector on Mount Merapi, Central Java. Tempo gathered information that fire first appeared around 9 am Sunday, November 1, on a cliff around Pos 1, then the fire began to spread but not close the climbing lane. Head of Disaster Management Operation Control Center (Pusdalops) of the Boyolali Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD) Kurniawan Fajar Prasetyo said together with a SAR team and local residents, they are trying to evacuate the climbers. "We are trying that all hikers can go down," he said Sunday. According to Kurniawan, about 300 climbers went off, most of them departed from the Barameru Post, Selo, on Friday last week. So far around 100 people have been evacuated. Kurniawan said, health condition of the climbers that were evacuated are well. Some of them immediately return to their homes, some of them are staying to wait for their friends who are still trapped. While evacuating climbers, officers are fighting fire around Post 1. Kurniawan said if fire is not immediately extinguished, it could expand and close the climbing lane. Cause and the extent of the fire is not immediately known.

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Josh Butler 

Indonesian Forest Fires Have Been Burning Since August

Posted: 02/11/2015 16:07 AEST Updated: 2 hours ago 

 

 

Millions of acres of pristine, irreplaceable and invaluable Indonesian forest has been reduced to smouldering blackened ash, as 100,000 fires rage through the island region.

The sheer size and scale of the fire crisis is difficult to properly comprehend. Some of these fires have been burning since August, torching forest eons old and blanketing Papua, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur and countless islands of Indonesia in thick grey hazy smoke.

The World Resources Institute reports a staggering 127,000 fires have been reported in the region in 2015, the majority sparking and taking off in recent months.

Pictures from NASA's Earth Observatory, show the extent of smoke from the fires -- these images were taken over Borneo.


\ Smoke over Borneo

Earlier in October, Indonesia's Forestry Ministry reported 4.2 million acres of forest had been burnt out, a figure which is sure to have risen since first reported.

Carbon emissions from the fires, at their peak, surpassed emissions belched out by the entire United States of America. More than half a million people have reported respiratory problems.

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Biological Hazard - Singapore, Capital City, Singapore [Singapore General Hospital] : Hepatitis C Outbreak

Fifth death linked to Hepatitis C outbreak at SGH

A medical review committee chaired by an external senior hepatologist has found that a hepatitis C infection could not be ruled out as a contributing factor to the death of a fifth patient following a viral outbreak of hepatitis C at the Singapore General Hospital, local media reported on Monday.

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Biological Hazard

Singapore

Capital City, Singapore [Singapore General Hospital]

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Biological Hazard in Singapore on Tuesday, 20 October, 2015 at 05:07 (05:07 AM) UTC.

Description A medical review committee chaired by an external senior hepatologist has found that a hepatitis C infection could not be ruled out as a contributing factor to the death of a fifth patient following a viral outbreak of hepatitis C at the Singapore General Hospital, local media reported on Monday. The hospital had revealed the viral outbreak in its renal wards earlier this month, saying that four of the eight deaths out of the 22 affected patients had been linked to the viral infection. A fifth death had been under investigation then, and may now also be linked to the hepatitis C infection. "The committee concluded that the patient passed away from end-stage renal disease and pneumonia. While the death was not caused directly by hepatitis C virus, the committee could not rule out the possibility that hepatitis C virus infection could have been a contributing factor," TODAYonline reported SGH Medical Board chairman Professor Fong Kok Yong saying. Minister for Health Gan Kim Yong said on Saturday that international experts will be invited to advise the Independent Review Committee investigating the outbreak, so as to ensure that the review is thoroughly done. "The Committee will also look at the processes in both SGH and the Ministry of Health to identify whether there are any gaps and areas that we can improve upon so that we can strengthen our system," Mr Gan told The Straits Times. The hospital had previously contacted almost 1,000 people for hepatitis C screenings. 484 patients and 294 hospital employees have tested negative. The test results for 88 other cases are still pending. More tests will be done as the hospital schedules appointments for more patients, as well as for hospital staff currently on overseas leave. Biohazard name: Hepatitis C (outbreak) Biohazard level: 3/4 High Biohazard desc.: Bacteria and viruses that can cause severe to fatal disease in humans, but for which vaccines or other treatments exist, such as anthrax, West Nile virus, Venezuelan equine encephalitis, SARS virus, variola virus (smallpox), tuberculosis, typhus, Rift Valley fever, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, yellow fever, and malaria. Among parasites Plasmodium falciparum, which causes Malaria, and Trypanosoma cruzi, which causes trypanosomiasis, also come under this level. Symptoms:   Status: confirmed

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Hepatitis C could have contributed to death of 5th patient, says SGH

TODAY file photo

 

Medical review committee could not rule out hep C infection as a contributing factor in patient’s death

Published: 10:33 PM, October 19, 2015

Updated: 1:29 AM, October 20, 2015

 

SINGAPORE — Hepatitis C virus infection could have been a contributing factor in the death of a fifth patient affected by the outbreak at the Singapore General Hospital (SGH).
In a update today (Oct 19), the hospital said that the medical review committee chaired by an external senior hepatologist has completed its investigation and found that the patient died from end-stage renal disease and pneumonia but hepatitis C infection could not be ruled out as a contributing factor in the death.

When it broke the news of the outbreak on Oct 6, SGH had said four of the eight deaths among the 22 patients affected are possibly linked to hepatitis C infection. The hospital had also said a fifth death was under review then. Its update today refers to this patient.

Professor Fong Kok Yong, chairman of SGH’s Medical Board, said: “The committee concluded that the patient passed away from end-stage renal disease and pneumonia. While the death was not caused directly by hepatitis C virus, the committee could not rule out the possibility that hepatitis C virus infection could have been a contributing factor.”

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