Fires continue to destroy the forests ofTram Chim National Park in the Mekong Delta's Dong Thapprovince despite heroic efforts by firefighters to control the blazes.
The first fire started in the A1 forest zone on April 25. Firefightersfought for seven hours to stomp out the blaze but it sparked up againon April 26 and took more than one hour to bring back under control.
An estimated 200ha of indigo forest and pasture land burned, accordingto the park's fire prevention and fighting team.
While firefighters were striving to stamp out the A1 fire, anotherblaze broke out in the park's A2 zone on April 26. Heavy winds causedthe fire to spread quickly.
"There are more than 1,100ha of indigo forests in the A2 zone and fourareas are in close proximity to the fire," said deputy director of thepark's management board Nguyen Van Hung.
"Hot and dry weather combined with strong winds have createdfavourable conditions for the fires to spread," he said.
Fires have sprung up in ten areas of the forest, he added.
Although more than 550 people, including police, soldiers andfirefighters, were armed with 15 large-capacity water pumps andthousands of metres of pipes to fight against the fires, the blazescontinued unabated.
"The fires just keep going. As soon as one fire is stamped out,another breaks out. We're exhausted," said Major-General Huynh Van Dap,head of the fire prevention and fighting team in the park's Hong Nguarea.
"Fire fighters are forced to get water from canals that are 500-1,000maway, making it difficult for them to fight the fires," he said.
"Tough terrain has made it difficult for fire trucks to gain access tothe scene," he added.
Fires in the A2 area have been put out but there was still a high riskfor them to break out again. Firefighters continued to work in the A1area, said Hung.
The fires have threatened hundreds of species of birds, notablyred-headed cranes which are listed as an endangered species in theworld's red book.
An investigation has been planned to determine the cause of the fires.
The park faced several big fires in recent years, including blazes in1996 and 2008 which burned 250ha and 332ha of forest and pasture land,respectively.
An interdisciplinary group of representatives from the Ministry ofAgriculture and Rural Development (MARD), the Ministry of PublicSecurity and the Ministry of Labour, War Invalids and Social Affairsworked with Dong Thap province authorities on April 26 to discuss fireprevention and fighting tasks for the dry season.
According to the MARD's Forest Management Department, forests in thenorthern region have escaped the season's fire risks, while nine forestsin the central, southern and Central Highlands regions still faced highfire risks, including forests in An Giang, Binh Dinh, Ba Ria-Vung Tau,Binh Thuan and Gia Lai provinces./.
The first fire started in the A1 forest zone on April 25. Firefightersfought for seven hours to stomp out the blaze but it sparked up againon April 26 and took more than one hour to bring back under control.
An estimated 200ha of indigo forest and pasture land burned, accordingto the park's fire prevention and fighting team.
While firefighters were striving to stamp out the A1 fire, anotherblaze broke out in the park's A2 zone on April 26. Heavy winds causedthe fire to spread quickly.
"There are more than 1,100ha of indigo forests in the A2 zone and fourareas are in close proximity to the fire," said deputy director of thepark's management board Nguyen Van Hung.
"Hot and dry weather combined with strong winds have createdfavourable conditions for the fires to spread," he said.
Fires have sprung up in ten areas of the forest, he added.
Although more than 550 people, including police, soldiers andfirefighters, were armed with 15 large-capacity water pumps andthousands of metres of pipes to fight against the fires, the blazescontinued unabated.
"The fires just keep going. As soon as one fire is stamped out,another breaks out. We're exhausted," said Major-General Huynh Van Dap,head of the fire prevention and fighting team in the park's Hong Nguarea.
"Fire fighters are forced to get water from canals that are 500-1,000maway, making it difficult for them to fight the fires," he said.
"Tough terrain has made it difficult for fire trucks to gain access tothe scene," he added.
Fires in the A2 area have been put out but there was still a high riskfor them to break out again. Firefighters continued to work in the A1area, said Hung.
The fires have threatened hundreds of species of birds, notablyred-headed cranes which are listed as an endangered species in theworld's red book.
An investigation has been planned to determine the cause of the fires.
The park faced several big fires in recent years, including blazes in1996 and 2008 which burned 250ha and 332ha of forest and pasture land,respectively.
An interdisciplinary group of representatives from the Ministry ofAgriculture and Rural Development (MARD), the Ministry of PublicSecurity and the Ministry of Labour, War Invalids and Social Affairsworked with Dong Thap province authorities on April 26 to discuss fireprevention and fighting tasks for the dry season.
According to the MARD's Forest Management Department, forests in thenorthern region have escaped the season's fire risks, while nine forestsin the central, southern and Central Highlands regions still faced highfire risks, including forests in An Giang, Binh Dinh, Ba Ria-Vung Tau,Binh Thuan and Gia Lai provinces./.
