Online Desk  :  A fire broke out at Kolmatia Forest Patrol Outpost area under the Sundarbans East Forest Division on Saturday. The Forest Department confirmed the fire, adding that the locals first noticed smoke rising from Teparbil area of the forest on Saturday morning (March 22). On information, they have begun efforts to extinguish it. Local sources reported that forest officials rushed to the scene upon receiving the news. However, due to the distance from the nearest water source, a canal, firefighters are facing challenges in controlling the blaze. To prevent the fire from spreading across a larger area of the forest, forest rangers have started creating fire lines around the affected zone.

Upon receiving the alert, four units of the Fire Service have been dispatched to the scene. Abtad-e- Alam, Station Officer of the Sharankhola Fire Service and Civil Defense Station, said, “Units from Sharankhola and Morelganj have already reached the site. Two additional units from Rampal and Kachua are on their way.” Bipuleshwar Das, Forest Officer of Dhansagar Station under the Chandpai Range of the Sundarbans East Forest Division, explained, “There is no water source nearby. The fire is burning deep within the forest, about two to two and a half kilometers away from the canal. Once the tide rises, water pumps will be transported via boats.”

Kazi Muhammad Nurul Karim, Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) of the Sundarbans East Forest Division, stated, “We have been informed about the fire in the Sundarbans. I am heading to the site and will provide more details about the extent of the fire once I arrive.”