20230313 Netravalli and Mollem forests latest blaze spots, yet to be fully doused
India Mar 13 2023 “Forest”
Dead : dead 0 or unknown Burnout : 0 or unknown Injured : injured 0 or unknown
Netravalli and Mollem forests latest blaze spots, yet to be fully doused
Updated: 2023-03-13
KERI: After forest fires burnt down several patches inside Mhadei Wildlife Sanctuary, they are now blazing through the dense and pristine forests of Netravalli Wildlife Sanctuary in Sanguem and Bhagwan Mahavir Wildlife Sanctuary in Dharbandora.
There were constant reports of fires breaking out on Saturday and Sunday, even as forest officials were tirelessly working to control the spread of the infernos. Despite added help from volunteers, the fires could not be contained until Sunday evening.
On Sunday, fires began to blaze through the forests in Dharbandora, on the hill adjacent to the national highway passing from Mollem to Ponda.
“We are making our best efforts to douse the fires. In some areas, we were able to curtail the spread of the fires,” said deputy conservator of forests of wildlife, Anand Jadhav. “We are continuously monitoring the situation and are vigilant about the wildfires.”
However, wildlifers fear for wildlife.
Fires were reported from Kumbhari, Potre and the surrounding areas of Netravalli Wildlife Sanctuary. Range forest officer, Bipin Faldesai, said, “We are working hard to douse the fires in areas that are inaccessible.”
Suryakant Gaonkar from Bhuipal, who volunteered for the firefighting efforts in Collem, said that the fires could be seen spreading in different directions, which makes containment difficult.
“From morning till evening, I was involved in the manual firefighting operations. The fire could not be contained fully,” Gaonkar said. “It was very challenging as the fire was spreading in different directions. There is a need for additional manpower on the ground to douse the fire completely before it causes more losses to the rich forests and wildlife.”
Chandrakant Shinde, a wildlifer who volunteered to douse the fire inside the Bhagwan Mahavir Wildlife Sanctuary, said, “Today, when we were in the forest to control the fire, a chopper dumped water to douse the fire, but it didn’t reach the affected site.” He added, “The water fell away from the targeted area due to wind velocity generated by the chopper’s blades. Also, the high temperature at the higher elevations saw some of the water evaporate.”
Shinde said that since this is a ground fire, direct water supply on the ground is needed.
Web Source: The Times of India