Forest rangers monitoring forests in An Giang Province. — Photo vov.vn

AN GIANG — Forests in the southern province of An Giang are at high risk of fires due to the dry season and prolonged hot weather, local forest rangers have warned.

The provincial authorities have implemented several measures to prevent forest fires, according to online newspaper vov.vn.

Hồ Văn Minh, head of the forest ranger department in An Phú Commune of Tịnh Biên District, said: “We are a group of nine in charge of managing 200ha of forest.”

“We patrol the forest around the clock to detect fires because this time is very sensitive,” said Minh.

In the forests, water tanks were always kept full, the forest ranger said.

Lý Vĩnh Đạt, head of the Forest Ranger Department of Tri Tôn District, said the department had to manage more than 5,500 ha of forest, of which 3,300 ha is in mountainous areas.

To deal with unpredictable weather, the department has worked to ensure fire prevention and control, Đạt said.

“The department had conducted 24/7 patrols and tightly controlled people entering the forests, especially in high risk areas,” he said.

According to An Giang Forest Ranger Department, the province had total forest land of 17,000 ha in delta and mountainous regions.

The high-risk area is more than 7,000ha in districts of Tịnh Biên, Tri Tôn and Thoại Sơn.

Currently, temperatures are about 1 degree Celsius higher than the same period last year.

With hot weather, low humidity and dried-up canals, materials scattered under the canopy could easily catch fire.

The department had raised the level of forest alarm to 5 – extremely dangerous – and provided four trucks, 70 canoes and 1,200 fire extinguishers. — VNS