Firefighters, locals put out farm fire in Oman

Muscat: Townsfolk from Bidbid worked hand-in-hand with firefighters to put out a fire that broke out in a farm in Dakhiliya.
An official from the Public Authority for Civil Defence and Ambulance (PACDA) said, “We at PACDA, value the role that residents play, and would like to advise them to always value their lives and take caution, in order to avoid harm.” Khalfan Al Rawahi from Bidbid, who works with a water tanker, was one of the first on site.
“Around 10.50pm, I received a call from my brother, telling me about the fire. Since I was delivering water at the time, I went straight to the location and sent a message on the Bidbid water tanker WhatsApp group. When I got there, I was one of the first people at the scene,” Al Rawahi said. The fire started near two schools.
“It was an enormous blaze, near ‘Children’s Growth’ and ‘Zaineb bin Qais,’ which are two schools. We were somehow able to contain the fire, keeping the flames away from the schools and parked buses until PACDA arrived.” From there, it became a team effort.
Thanks all
The first responder said, “We split into two groups: One to reinforce PACDA’s water supply, and another one to directly combat the flames. It took all of the guys to finally extinguish the fire. I want to thank everyone, from the water suppliers and PACDA’s efforts, to the locals who helped hold the pipes as we sprayed water onto the fire.”
It is unclear what caused the fire, Al Rawahi explained. “We’re not sure what started it,” he said, “But we would like to ask the competent authorities to clean up some of the old tree branches and waste, to avoid any reoccurrence.”
On the night of the fire, social media was filled with photos and videos that showed civilians with water tanks fighting the fire to stop it from spreading. “Our team received a report saying that a fire had just started in the discarded remains of trees and grass near a school,” the official added. “Teams were dispatched immediately. Although there was a school in the vicinity, we were able to stop the fire before it could reach the institution,” the PACDA official added. “Once we were sure that all was well, we went home, at around 1.30 or so.”