Thai Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM) personnel on a firefighting helicopter inspect fire spots to drop water to combat forest fires over Mae On district in the northern Thai province of Chiang Mai on March 26, 2025. Forest fires are burning in several areas of northern Thailand, contributing to the annual spike in air pollution that comes with farmers burning stubble to prepare their land for the next crop. (Photo by MANAN VATSYAYANA / AFP) / To go with THAILAND-ENVIRONMENT-POLLUTION-FIRE by Montira RUNGJIRAJITTRANON
A BRIGHT orange helicopter races over the jungle to dump water on a raging wildfire that is adding to the air pollution choking the northern tourist hub of Chiang Mai.
Chutaphorn Phuangchingngam, the only female captain in Thailand’s national disaster prevention team, draws on two decades of flying to steer the Russian-made chopper through the thick smoke.
