First of the season at Margallas: Quick response prevents spread of fire

CDA says fire tender stationed permanently, 30 pickets working round-the-clock in National Park.

ISLAMABAD:

The Capital Development Authority (CDA) on Thursday recorded this summer’s first forest-fire incident near Dhairi Village close to the Pir Sohawa picnic resort.

“The small-scale fire broke out at around 10.20am. It erupted alongside the main road in Jungle RS-16. CDA fire tenders rushed to the site and extinguished it at around 11.55am,” said CDA Spokesperson Malik Saleem Akhtar.

Akhtar said the carelessness of some tourists who dispose of their cigarette butts in the jungle could have triggered the fire, which engulfed and burnt bushes covering around four kanals of forest area. The cause of the fire, however, had not as yet been identified

An official of the CDA’s control room at Margalla Hills National Park (MHNP) said that around 100 forest keepers and villagers rushed to the scene of the fire and prevented it from spreading before fire tenders arrived.

The official added that it was the first seasonal fire reported at the MHNP.

CDA Environment Member Ahsan Ali Mangi said comprehensive arrangements had been made to minimise any losses resulting from summer fires on the Margallas.



Mangi said a fire tender had already been stationed permanently at Pir Sohawa near Monal Restaurant, while officials at 30 pickets with wireless connections were present in forest areas round-the-clock.

“Obtaining early information is the key. Today, we managed to prevent the fire from spreading because the incident was reported early,” said Mangi, adding that 10 to 12 feet wide fire separation lines were already in place to combat this problem.

According to data compiled by the CDA’s Environment Wing, which is available with The Express Tribune, there were 320 fire incidents in the MHNP between 2000 and 2010, damaging around 2,120 acres of forest area.

An Environment Wing official said that in the event of a large-scale fire incident, the civic agency could call on the Cabinet Division’s Emergency Relief Cell (ERC) helicopters to help extinguish the flames.



However, calls to the ERC fell on deaf ears in July 2011 when the cell refused to provide its helicopter service to help douse a fire that had burnt down 80 acres of forest area.

“The ERC refused on the grounds that their helicopters were busy rescuing people trapped in Attabad Lake in Hunza,” said the official.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 31^st, 2013.