Firefighters are trying to stamp out the fire at a pine forest in Diễn Châu District’s Diễn An Commune. — VNA/VNS Photo

NGHỆ AN — A forest fire that raged for six hours in the central province of Nghệ An was finally extinguished on Tuesday morning.

The fire started at 8pm in a pine forest in Diễn Châu District’s Diễn An Commune. Hot weather and strong winds caused the fire to quickly spread over dozens of hectares of pine forest. More than 200 households who live near the fire were evacuated.

More than 2,000 people including police officers, soldiers, local authorities and local residents helped to put out the fire.

Authorities have instructed firefighting forces to create firebreaks to prevent the flames from reaching residential areas to protect people’s property.

The district is yet to calculate the damage inflicted by the fire but local residents said it was the biggest fire ever recorded in the locality.

Although the forest fire has been brought under control, firefighters are still at the scene to prevent it from flaring up again.

Nghệ An is a locality under high risk of fires.

Since the beginning of this month, eight fires have broken out in the province, destroying 33hectares of forest.

One fire on June 26 in Diễn Châu’s Diễn Lợi Commune engulfed 70 hectares destroying 30-year-old pine trees. Strong winds made it difficult to tackle the blaze.

Thousands of personnel were mobilised to put out the fire which lasts two days. 

Four forest fires have been reported over the past four days in Yên Thành, Nghi Lộc and Diễn Châu districts.

Fire under control in Hà Tĩnh

Meanwhile, a forest fire in the central province of Hà Tĩnh’s Hương Sơn District was also extinguished on Tuesday morning.

Nguyễn Quang Thọ, chairman of Hương Sơn District’s People’s Committee said the fire destroyed between five and seven hectares of acacia and other trees.

The cause of the fire is being investigated, but one possible cause is people burning incense, Thọ said.

The blaze was started on a mountain in Vũ Quang District's Ân Phú Commune on Monday afternoon.

High temperatures of up to 40 degree Celsius, along with the foehn effect (the warming and drying of air on the lee side of a mountain range), caused it to spread quickly to Hương Sơn District's Sơn Long Commune.

Earlier on Monday, a fire at a pine forest in the central province of Thừa Thiên-Huế was put out with the help of dozens of fire-fighters, soldiers, police and local residents.

A strong heatwave with temperature of 40 degrees Celsius, has hit northern and central provinces, putting them at greater risks of forest fires.

According to the National Centre for Hydro-Metreologogical Forecasting, up to four heatwaves have been forecast to hit the north in the first half of July, while central provinces are forecast to continue suffering droughts. — VNS