Indonesian president cuts short U.S. visit, with warships deployed to deal with forest fire crisis

Indonesian President Joko Widodo has cut short his visit to the United States to deal with the forest fire crisis in the country when the warships have been deployed to help evacuate victims, officials said on Tuesday.

President Widodo decided Tuesday morning not to continue his journey in the United States after he received reports about health and social impact of the fire.

"I decide to abort the visit to the West Coast and directly fly back to Sumatra Island or Borneo Island," President Widodo said in a statement issued by the presidential office.

Meanwhile, shelters with clean and purified air have been established in areas most affected by haze in Sumatra Island and Borneo Island where forest fire has claimed more than 17 lives since last month, a government spokesman said.

"Humanitarian operations for the victims of forest fire are continuing," Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, spokesman of the national disaster management agency, told Xinhua over the phone.

According to him, three warships have already arrived in Banjarmasin of Borneo Island to carry out the evacuation operation.

Preparations are underway for ten more ships to be deployed for the humanitarian operation, the spokesman said.

One of the ships provided by the Indonesian navy is a floating hospital, he added.

Forest and agriculture fires have affected 43 million people in the country, with more than 500,000 of them suffering from respiratory problems, according to the disaster management agency.

Forest fires, which initially occurred in Sumatra Island and Borneo Island in the western and central parts of Indonesia, have spread to Celebes Island, Maluku Island and Papua in the east.

More than 22,000 soldiers, police and officers have been mobilized douse the widespread blaze with aids from foreign countries.

On Friday President Widodo ordered more troops be deployed to the hot spots.

However, due to the large territory and a lack of devices, especially the impacts of the El Nino phenomenon, "it is impossible to terminate the forest fire within one or two weeks," Sutopo said.

Indonesia is home to the world's largest palm oil industry and the annual slash-and-burn practices to clear land for new plantations cause forest fires. The situation worsens this year due to the El Nino effect. Enditem