Tuesday 23 / April / 2024
Muscat: Though the cause of fire in a mountainous area of the wilayat of Al Hamra is not known, it is believed that it might have started due to a cooking fire left by some tourists, or due to the friction of Alaalan trees with olive trees, which sometimes causes blazes.
Over the course of three days teams of more than 200 people, with the support of police aircraft and the Royal Air Force of oman, cooperated to put out a fire that broke out in a mountainous area in the wilayat of Al Hamra.
Jamal Al Abri, a Shura member said, “The cause of the fire has not yet been determined. It may be due to a cooking fire left by some tourists, or due to the friction of Alaalan trees with olive trees, which sometimes cause fires.”
“The area is important, as it is a pasture for livestock, and tourists practice hiking there. A number of perennial trees in the area were burned by the fire,” Al Abri, the representative of wilayat Al Hamra added.
“The fire spread over an area of four square kilometres, and locals and volunteers cooperated with the fire fighting teams to put out the fire.”
Ahmed bin Salem Al Naabi, a legal researcher at the Environment Department in Dakhliyah, said, “The report was dealt with immediately, in coordination with concerned authorities. The next day, the fire fighting teams managed to control about 70 per cent of the fire, but in the evening the fire reappeared in some areas in the woods.”
The fire broke out in the Ras Haraq area on Wednesday, June 16, at 10:30 in the morning, and brought under control on Saturday, June 19, at 2 o’clock in the afternoon, the Civil Defence and Ambulance Authority announced the end to field operations.
Because of the rugged mountainous terrain and lack of water sources close to the area, the Civil Defence and Ambulance Authority took the help of police aviation and the Royal Air Force of Oman. Since they had to deal with the fire, the helicopters were unable to carry out combat operations.
An official from CDAA stated, “Five planes participated in extinguishing the fire, three from the Royal Oman Police, in addition to two planes from the Royal Air Force of Oman, where more than 200 personnel of firefighting teams with volunteers were able to put out the fire.”
Al Nabi from the Environment Authority said, “The specialists visited the site in order to monitor the operations, and they have made subsequent visits in order to determine the environmental impact resulting from the fire.”
EA noted that the site is rich in distinctive and dense wild trees, such as Alaalan, Albot, Al Atm and Sidr and other types of wild trees, and the Commission is working to monitor the impact and make plans for the rehabilitation of this damaged area.
The Omani Sidr Society also announced that it will, through the seed bank and the association’s nurseries, and in cooperation with the rest of the authorities, exert its efforts to restore the environment of the fire site in the wilayat of Al Hamra and Jabal Shams to make it better than it was before by growing wild trees such as Alaalan, Albot, Al Atm and Sidr.
