Page 5 - Forest Fires

Huge fire at Sariska tiger reserve, IAF choppers deployed to put out blaze

Over 200 people and two Indian Air Force helicopters were pressed into service to control a wildfire spread over 10 sq km of the Sariska Tiger Reserve in Rajasthan's Alwar, officials said on Tuesday. The fire had started on Sunday evening and was brought under control on Monday. A few hours later in the evening, the forest fire flared again and was continuing till Tuesday evening. The Forest Department asked people of nearby villages not to enter the forest area. The officials said no tiger is stuck in the affected area and their movement is being monitored. The Sariska reserve has 27 tigers, they added. Earlier looking at the situation, the district administration sought air assistance from the IAF, which deployed two Mi-17 V5 helicopters to control the fire. Sariska Field Director R N Meena said the forest staff, nature guides and local people are engaged in efforts to control the fire but they are facing difficulties due to hilly terrain, he said. The fire on hills has been

Smoke from wildfires destroys Ozone layer, reveals new study

Researchers cautioned that if major fires became more frequent with a changing climate, more damaging ultraviolet radiation from the sun will reach the ground.

US's Colorado declares state of emergency due to fast-moving grass fires

The US State of Colorado declared a state of emergency due to fast-moving grass fires created by high winds in Boulder County

Massive fire breaks out at Vaishno Devi shrine forest area

A massive fire broke out at the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine forest area on Tuesday.However, the fire has been brought under control by the team of the shrine board and the forest department.Meanwhile, the yatra to the holy shrine in Trikuta hills remained unaffected, Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board informed.As of now, no damage has been reported and the Yatra is conducted smoothly.Also, Union Minister of State Jitendra Singh tweeted "We are in touch with Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Trust management."The cause of the blaze is yet to be ascertained.

Massive forest fire in Greece's island still burning for 7th day

Firefighters and residents battled a massive forest fire on Greece's second largest island for a seventh day Monday

Wildfires in Russia's Siberia posing threat to hydroelectric power plant

A large wildfire in Russia's Siberia region is burning near a village and posing a threat to a hydroelectric power plant, local officials said on Monday.

IAF joins fire fighting operation as forest blaze rages in J-K's Udhampur

The Indian Air Force (IAF) on Monday joined a fire fighting operation to control a massive forest fire in Ghordi block in Udhampur district of Jammu and Kashmir, officials said

Worsening wildfires

Local tribes should be involved in forest upkeep and management

Up in smoke: Uttarakhand looks to the clouds, forest fires rage on

In the last 2 or 3 days, forest fires have broken out with seething frenzy in many areas of the hill state, and are threatening to destroy the rich plant and animal wealth of the Himalayan region

Pradhan, other Odisha MPs meet Prakash Javadekar over Simlipal forest fire

Days after a fire devastated the Similipal forest division in Odisha, Pradhan and other MPs from the state met Prakash Javadekar, demanding his intervention in the issue of forest fires in the state

Odisha govt claims no loss of life in Similipal forest fire

The Odisha government on Wednesday claimed that there was no loss of life in the Similipal National Park fire, which has been raging for around a week and spreading to newer areas.

1,300 forest fires reported in Mizoram in 2020, 1,090 caused due to 'jhum'

Around 1,090 incidents were caused due to slash-and- burn ''jhum'' cultivation and only 210 were due to natural causes, they said

Indian Army helps authorities to control forest fire in Arunachal Pradesh

Indian Army assisted forest authorities in controlling forest fire near Chillipam Monastery, West Kameng, Arunachal Pradesh

Dzukou Valley blaze under control but operations to continue: Official

The fire on the Dzukou range is under total control but all operations will continue, a Nagaland forest officer said on Friday

Over 256,000 hectare land in India affected by forest fire in 2019: Govt

Forest fires have been increasing across the globe and over 2.56 lakh hectare land in India has been affected by it in 2019 as reported by states, the environment ministry informed Lok Sabha.

California wildfires some of largest in state history, thousands flee

More than 12,000 firefighters aided by helicopters and air tankers are battling wildfires throughout California

How to stop the next global outbreak

Since December, evidence has strongly suggested that something wild infected humans with the virus at one such market in central Wuhan

Australian 'megablaze' under control, wet weather promises further respite

New South Wales firefighters said they finally had the upper hand in the fight against the vast Gospers Mountain fire on Sydney's northwestern outskirts

Increasing green cover

Ambiguity in the definition of forests should be removed

Climate stress-tests, robo-cars and more in 2020

Changing weather patterns and urgent need to cut down emissions drastically will dominate discussions