NILGIRIS: After nearly two weeks of intense firefighting efforts, over 450 forest department personnel, including six district forest officers (DFOs) and range officers, heaved a sigh of relief as they doused the blaze that ravaged nearly 1,000 acres of the reserve forest of the Nilgiris Forest Division on Tuesday.
Speaking to TNIE, R Kiruba Shankar, field director of Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (MTR) and Conservator of Forests (Nilgiris), said that although the fire has been fully brought under control, a section of the staff continue to be stationed at nearby anti-poaching watchers (APW) camps to ensure immediate response in case of any fresh fire incidents, particularly in Parsons Valley Forest Range, which was the most affected.
“Nearly 1,000 acres of forest area was destroyed in the fire, which reportedly broke out due to excessive heat, on April 15. The staff worked in shifts to control the fire. However, strong winds coupled with the scorching heat aggravated the situation. Even as we managed to control the fire in one location, it simultaneously broke out in another. We were engaged in round-the-clock firefighting operations, with the involvement of personnel from across the Nilgiris, Coimbatore, Tiruppur, Salem, Erode and Hosur.”
“We created fire lines by clearing ground vegetation over stretches to prevent the spread of fire. We also created a small pond by drawing water from a dam and laid a pipeline for nearly a kilometre to douse the fire. In addition to our staff, personnel from the State Disaster Management Authority were also engaged,” he added.
A brief spell of summer rain in Parsons Valley aided firefighting efforts.
The official further stated that there was no significant disturbance to wildlife movement and that the fire primarily affected invasive species.
