VietNamNet Bridge – Dozens of hectares of protective forest in the central city of Quy Nhon, Binh Dinh province were burnt down after a man burnt votive items for the dead. The 14-hour fire was reported as the largest in the past 10 years.

The fire on Ba Hoa Mount, Quy Nhon City was detected on Saturday morning, August 9. Many specialized vehicles and hundreds of police officers, soldiers, rangers and local people were mobilized to put out the fire.

It took local people 14 hours to extinguish the fire, which threatened tens of houses at the foot of Ba Hoa Mount. Smoke, dust, and ash from the fire spilled down to Quy Nhon City, tens of kilometers from the forest.

The local authorities investigated and found out that Mr. Nguyen Van Lam, 40, a resident of Quy Nhon City burnt incense and votive items at the Hoc Ba Bep cemetery and the flame spread to the nearby protective forest.

The fire burned down more than 20 hectares of eucalyptus and Acacia forest 10-15 years old.

Mr. Le Huu Loc, Binh Dinh province’s chair, said that it was the largest forest fire in the province in the last 10 years. The province mobilized more than 800 people to put out the fire. At 12pm on August 9, the fire was completely extinguished.

In Quang Ngai province, also on Saturday morning, while working on their field, a couple caused a fire which then spread to the adjacent forest. The fire burned down about 10 hectares of forest.

It took hundreds of people six hours to extinguish the fire. A couple fainted because of the smoke.

Thuy Hanh