Grass fire in Ilocos Norte under control, gov’t agencies take steps to prevent reignition
LAOAG CITY, Ilocos Norte (PIA) – The Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) in Ilocos Norte has declared the grassfire in Carasi town under control as of 2 p.m. on January 31, following a swift and coordinated response from local and regional agencies.
The Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (RDRRMC 1) said that while the fire is now under control, the heli-bucket operations will still continue to saturate the surrounding affected areas and minimize possible recurrence of the fire.
The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) in Ilocos Norte reports that approximately 287 hectares of land were affected, including 50 hectares designated under the DENR’s National Greening Program.
As of this posting, the cause of the fire is still under investigation.
In an interview, Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Region 1 Director Laurence Mina assured the public that the agency will be monitoring the affected area for the next few days to ensure that the fire does not reignite.
“To really put a stop to the fires, our air assets arrived from the Philippine Air Force – the Black Hawk and a Sokol. They used a bambi bucket to collect water from nearby lakes and other water sources. These were used to saturate the areas surrounding grassfire-affected locations, especially the part covered by the National Greening Program, so there is a natural fire-break line,” he said.
The fire, which broke out at about 2:30 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 30, in the mountainous areas of Barangays Barbaquezo and Virbira, prompted coordinated efforts from both local and regional agencies to control it.
According to the RDRRMC 1, emergency responders, including the Municipal DRRM Office and Municipal Police Station of Carasi, Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) and Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), the first and second Provincial Mobile Force Company (PMFC) swiftly conducted fire suppression operations at the incident site when the fire started.
To strengthen their ongoing efforts, the Tactical Operations Group 1 (TOG1) was deployed for aerial reconnaissance and will conduct heli-bucket operations to assist with fire suppression.
To oversee the situation on the ground, MDRRMC Carasi has set up an Incident Management Team (IMT), led by MDRRM Officer Engr. Marc Stanley Bulil-lit as the incident commander.
Authorities have remained vigilant as they continue efforts to prevent the fire from reigniting and ensure the safety of the affected communities. (AMB/EJFG, PIA Ilocos Norte)
