Soldiers and civilians join forces to contain a fire in the Phou Pha Nang National Protected Area in Sangthong district, Vientiane. - VT
VIENTIANE (Vientiane Times/Asia News Network): Authorities in Sangthong district, Vientiane, have asked for help from the army, Vientiane Administration Office, and the Ministry of National Defence to help extinguish a fire burning in the Phou Pha Nang National Protected Area (NPA).
The Governor of Sangthong district, Phongsavanh Siliphan, said fires have broken out in several places in the National Protected Area since March 20.
Local authorities and villagers worked together to bring the fires under control, but on March 26 villagers informed authorities that fires were again burning in five villages around Phou Phan Nang mountain, over a distance of about two kilometres.
The Ministry of National Defence sent more than 200 soldiers, accompanied by the Vice Mayor of Vientiane, Phouvong Vongkhamsao, together with officials and local residents, numbering more than 600 in total, to help extinguish the fires.
Phongsavanh said he hoped the fires would be brought under control by the end of this month.
The fires have not affected any houses or farmland but people living in the area are suffering from smoke pollution.
The fires are thought to have burnt over 100 hectares of woodland, Phongsavanh said. They spread very quickly because most of the vegetation consists of bamboo trees.
In the meantime, Sangthong district authorities have advised villagers to exercise extreme caution during slash-and-burn farming and when hunting, as these activities have been the main cause of bushfires in the past.
Officials are working with villagers in at-risk areas to help them understand how they can prevent wildfires.
Phou Pha Nang forest is one of the most important national protected areas in Laos which were given this status in 1993.
Located about 45 minutes’ drive from Vientiane, this 1,525-sq km forested area runs the length of Sangthong district.
Every year, the authorities issue a bushfire alert as temperatures rise and the country’s forests become drier.
Most fires have been reported within national protected areas and provincial protected areas because these are the largest areas of woodland. Wildfires are burning out of control across hundreds of hectares in various parts of the country, with authorities struggling to extinguish the fires as the hot weather continues.
Authorities are concerned that the fires, caused by farmers burning scrubland in preparation for crop planting, could worsen because of a lack of fire-fighting equipment.
In Pakngum district, Vientiane, over 400 soldiers, emergency rescue volunteers and local people have teamed up to bring a wildfire under control in the Phou Khao Khuay National Protected Area, where at least 300 hectares of land are believed to be affected.
