Nearly 1,000 people work to extinguish forest fire

Nguyen Dang Hoang, chairman of Dien Yen commune People’s Committee, said the fire sparked in an area of the forest around noon on July 2, before quickly spreading to a large area.

Functional units had to mobilize nearly 1,000 people, including soldiers, police, militia and locals to stop the blaze from growing further. They tried to contain the flames to prevent the forest-fire from spilling over to surrounding residential areas.

The fire could not be brought under control until 4pm the same day due to the scorching weather and a strong breeze from the southwest. Local authorities were afraid that some households at the foot of the mountain may be affected by the fire.

Another forest fire occurred at Nam Dan district, Nghe An province on the morning of July 1. It took relevant authorities five hours to stamp out the fire.

There is a high-risk of forest fires breaking out during periods of intense heat.