BHUBANESWAR: Spending 36 hours in a dense forest, six fire fighting squad members in Dhenkanal forest division not just contained a wildfire in the Kapilash wildlife sanctuary but also proved that nature matters for them more than their lives.
Apart from dehydration and dysentery, the squad members who spent a day and half fighting the blazing inferno at compartment-6 of the sanctuary six days back also sustained minor burn injuries when blowing air pushed the flames to a height of 15 feet.
Such was the condition that Mahaprasad Behera, a 25-year-old para staff also bled from his nose.
Three other members of the squad, fire watcher Binod Sethi (32) and elephant tracker Pratap Dehuri and Chandan Nayak also suffered from dehydration.
The team, however, did not return till it completely brought the fire under control in the sanctuary.
Another team was also sent to assist it with food and ORS powder.
After their return, the forest division immediately provided them the required medical assistance and rest.
However, after a day’s rest the team rejoined its fire fighting duty in the Kapilash range.
“After the team successfully controlled the wildfire, the patrolling was intensified and no forest fire point has been detected in the sanctuary area since March 11,” said a senior official of the forest division.
DFO Prakash Chand Gogineni said the dedication and relentless efforts of the 375 field staff, who despite all the challenges have been on the ground, have helped the division in dealing with the crisis effectively.
Not just the forest squad in Kapilash, thousands of forest guards, protection squad members and fire fighting personnel across the State are on the ground for more than two weeks fighting the wildfire crisis relentlessly as unsung heroes.
Eight teams of Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRAF) have also joined them in Similipal Tiger Reserve and other wildlife and territorial divisions in fighting the crisis.
The forest staff and protection squad members are on the field from the beginning of February and have been taking the risk of walking miles inside forests to douse flames in the inaccessible pockets.
While the State government has provided fire fighting gears and equipment to fire fighting squads, most of the forest guards at beat level are doing their job without any protection.
Apart from being susceptible to burns and smoke inhalation, they are exposed to heat exhaustion.
In Similipal, where hundreds of forest guards, protection squad members and ODRAF team members are engaged in controlling the forest fire, network points have been set up to establish communication and deliver timely assistance to the fire-fighting personnel and fire watchers, said officials.