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Our Correspondent
Kohima, Jan. 8 (EMN): The wildfire that has been raging the hillocks near Dzükou Valley since it was reportedly started by some unidentified trekkers on December 29 is said to have finally subsided on Friday.
Sources informed Eastern Mirror that efforts made by personnel from government agencies and volunteers to safe the scenic valley had paid off as the fire was “90 per cent” contained on Friday.
The fire is expected to be brought completely under control in the next 24 hours though the wind remains volatile, it added.
Southern Angami Youth Organisation (Sayo) vice-president, Vithel Pusa told this newspaper that the contingents deployed at ground zero were able to ‘reduce the fire on the side of the valley to some level and there was no reports of powerful fire’.
He informed that smokes were billowing from three locations but no active fire was reported. He went on to update that a 300-strong contingent is manning the Dzükou and 20 more Sayo volunteers would be deployed on Saturday to tackle the inferno.
DDMA holds review meeting
SP Kohima, Manoj Kumar also informed the house at the Kohima District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) review meeting on Dzükou fire operation that the ground operation team camped at the valley had updated about ‘no active fire or smoke visible from the camp site till 8:30 am on Friday’.
He went on to inform that a few hours later, smoke was noticed at three locations with low intensity but no fire. ‘Accordingly, teams were mobilised to the sites and fires at two locations were doused physically,’ he was quoted as saying by DPRO Kohima.
“However due to the distance factor accompanied by rough terrain and the unavailability of the tracks, the team could not reach the third location, which is located on the extreme ridge visible from the camp site with no fire,” it added.
DFO Kohima, Raj Kumar also told the house that the National Remote Sensing Agency (NRSA) didn’t detect any active fire via satellite on Thursday and Friday.
Meanwhile, the team at the base camp was said to have informed that it would assess the situation and carry out the operation as plan. OSD to NSDMA, Johny Rongmei also stated that India Air Force (IAF) would continue the operation on Saturday and “douse the visible smoke at the site”.
The DC of Kohima, Mohammed Ali Shihab A, told the officials attending the review meeting to strictly implement the ban on jungle burning in their respective areas.