40 hectares of forest are burning fiercely

Dozens of hectares of production forest in Tran Van Thoi district burned down, many forces participated in controlling the fire, but could not put it out on the afternoon of April 10.

At around 12:30, a 3-4 year old Melaleuca forest area of Farm 402 (belonging to Military Region 9) in Khanh Binh Tay Commune, Tran Van Thoi District, caught fire and spread to the surrounding area. Strong winds caused smoke to be tens of meters high, along with ashes and debris flying over a large area, threatening to spread to the 100-hectare Melaleuca forest area next door.

40 hectares of forest are burning fiercely — Authorities are trying to control the fire. Video : *An Minh*

About 200 soldiers, fire police and local forces urgently controlled the fire. Mr. Phan Hoang Vu, Director of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Ca Mau province, said the fire fighting process encountered many difficulties due to strong winds and the fire occurring in hot weather. The fire area was far from the main road, so specialized vehicles had difficulty accessing it.

"In the immediate future, the forces are trying to control and slow down the fire, arrange people to be on duty from a distance, handle the incident and ensure the safety of about 20 households about 3 km from the fire scene," said Mr. Vu, adding that in the worst case scenario, the households will be evacuated.

The column of smoke tens of meters high limited the visibility of the fire fighting force. Photo: An Minh — The column of smoke tens of meters high limited the visibility of the fire fighting force. Photo: *An Minh*

As of 5:20 p.m., the fire had not been controlled. Vice Chairman of Ca Mau Provincial People's Committee Le Van Su directly directed the fire fighting at the scene.

The burning area is a regenerating forest after logging, with a total production forest area of about 150 hectares. Farm 402 is under the management of the Logistics Department, Military Region 9, mainly growing cajuput, specializing in raising freshwater fish and agricultural production. The drought has dried up some canals in this area, making it difficult to put out the fire.

Currently, the whole province has more than 29,000 hectares of freshwater forests suffering from drought, of which more than 11,000 hectares are at level IV and V fire warnings. This area is mainly concentrated in the forest areas of Tran Hoi and Khanh Binh Tay communes (Tran Van Thoi district) and the Southwest Forestry Experimental Research Center.

An Minh

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