Two forest fires in the capital

GANGTOK, 12 Mar: Another forest fire, this time in the capital, was reported at Lower Tathanghen belt below the Government Press on Sunday. The fire was brought under control before it damaged any private property but had destroyed around 2 hectares of Forest land.
Gangtok Fire Station received the fire call from the Sadar Thana at around 11:45 PM on Sunday and a team from the Gangtok Fire Station with one fire tender rushed to the spot. After a joint operation of around two and a half hours by Fire personnel along with Forest guards, Sikkim Police personnel and local people the fire was brought under control.
Likewise, a big forest fire occurred on Hurhuray Dara which also falls below the Government Press on Saturday. It took more than 8 hours to bring this fire under control as it had spread over around five and half hectares of land.
Gangtok Fire Station received this fire call at around 9:55 AM and immediately rushed to the spot with 3 fire tenders and started its operation along with Forest guards, Sikkim Police personnel and local people for the whole day.
Gangtok Fire Station Deputy Chief Fire Officer, Prakash Rai stated that with the ongoing dry spell all the fire stations across the state are on high alert for forest fires. He mentioned that good coordination with the Forest Department, Police and local people, the Fire Department has been able to work efficiently in such situations.