Fires in Viet Nam
22 April 2002
Update from the GFMC
The fire expert, Mr. Brad Sanders, dispatched to Viet Nam on Saturday 21 April 2002 (see Update of 20 April) has arrived on site. After a briefing in the Ministry for Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) in Ha Noi on 21 April he left for the fire site in U Minh Thuong National Park. The assignment for the assessment mission has now been prolonged until 27 April 2002.
On 20 April 2002 at 1700 loacal time he reported scattered rain and overcast in Ho Chi Minh City.
From Viet Nam News, 20 April 2002
Wildfires raging through U Minh Ha forest in the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta province of Ca Mau since last week have finally been brought under control.
U Minh Ha forest fire put out after protracted fight
CA MAU — The wildfires raging through U Minh Ha forest in the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta
province of Ca Mau since last week have finally been brought under control.
The blaze in Section 072 of U Minh Farm No. 3, which threatened the Vo Doi protected forest
some 1,000m away, was extinguished on Wednesday morning, according to chief commander of the committee to combat forest fire, Vo Thanh Binh.
About 10.000 soldiers, policemen and local residents joined in the efforts to combat the
fire and protect the 4,000-ha Vo Doi forest.
Fire-fighters dug a 4-km trench and gathered 6,000 people along the ditch, ready to
prevent the fire from spreading to Vo Doi.
Unfortunately, at least 4,000ha of forests in the U Minh Farm No. 1, U Minh Farm No. 3
and Tran Van Thoi Farm (in U Minh Ha Forest) were destroyed by the week-long fire.
"Firemen had a difficult time managing the fire because there was no access for engines
and equipment to get to the site," said lieutenant general Huynh Tien Phong, commander of the Military Zone 9.
So far no deaths have been reported in the U Minh Ha forest.
Meanwhile, forest fires have also ravaged hundreds of hectares of Bac Ai forest in the
southern province of Ninh Thuan.
More than 30ha of the 61ha Tan Tien Farm have been destroyed. Fires were also reported at the 40,000ha Sat River protected forest in Ninh Thuan
Province.
Bac Ai forest, a well-known revolutionary base during the resistance wars, produces
many types of hardwood.
Southern Provinces still scorched by
drought, no respite in sight: experts
Ho Chi Minh City – Weather experts have said
there is not much relief in sight from the prolonged drought that has inflicted
huge losses on the agricultural sector in southern Viet Nam.
According to the Southern Hydro-Meteorological Forecasting Station, not much
rain is expected in the near future, except for some light late afternoon rains.
The dry season will drag on until next month, it predicts.
The drought has thus far caused an estimated loss of VND203.3 billion (US$13.3
million) on farmers in affected provinces.
The Water and Hydraulics Management Department says 7,561 ha of rice, 2,580 ha
of cash crops and 358 ha of vegetables have perished due to lack of water for
irrigation. Another 28,739 ha of rice, 32,900 ha of cash crops and 4,990 ha of
vegetables are under serious threat of destruction. The provinces are Long An,
Tien Giang, Ben Tre, Kien Giang, Can Tho, Bac Lieu and Ca Mau in the Cuu Long
(Mekong) Delta have been worst hit by the drought.
These provinces are considered the rice basket of Viet Nam. Most of the
nation’s rice for export is produced here.
The reported loss does not take into account the fire that has razed large areas
of the U Minh Thuong and U Minh Ha cajeput forests in the southernmost provinces
of Ca Mau and Kien Giang.
The drought has dried up most of the lakes and water reservoirs. Underground
water levels have also plunged a metre lower than in the 1997-98 dry season,
arguably the worst to date.
The dry season normally last from November to April in the southern part of the
country, but the region has received no rain from late last year until last
week.
Wildfire ravages Bai Giang forest
Bac Giang – Fires completely destroyed more than
20ha of forest in Luc Ngan Forest in the northern province of Bac Giang early
this week.
The fire is believed to have spread from a nearby slash-and-burn operation, but
the local forest management board has not yet identified the culprits.
Valiant southern farmer gives his all to
protect timeless family benefactor
Kien Giang – (paraphrased) Farmer Nguyen Phu Cuong was speechless and had
tears in his eyes upon viewing burned cajeput trees. While gathering water ferns
in a reservoir at U Minh Thoung Forest reserve, someone cried out that a forest
fire had started. As he exited the pond, bruising his knee on tree roots, he
joined 5 other men, his wife, and 2 neighbors and traveled 10 kilometers (2
hours) to the fire with knives, wash basin, baskets and shovels. Cuong divided
the crew into 2 groups, one to dig a fireline and the other to extinguish
flames. After 6 days and 5 nights, experiencing 60°C temperatures and thick
smoke, they suppressed the fire and checked it for 2 more weeks to ensure no
reburn. But “in summer, the fire may burst out again at any time,” he said.
Cuong and others are pre-constructing firebreaks around 15 ha of forest they
want to protect from a future fire. Cuong is committed to save the forests
around his home in Kien Giang province not only because he’s a former forest
ranger, but for a deep love and respect that is filial in nature. He and his
family depend on the forest for food and he would protect it from fire even if
it meant dying. During his firefighting efforts, Cuong’s house caught on fire,
but his second child received help from neighbours to extinguish it. Cuong used
his savings to pay men who helped. Coming from a poor family that existed on
tree roots, leaves, herbs, bee honey, fish, and hunting, Cuong recalled that his
parents and grandparents were very dependent on the forest. Forest land was
reduced by population pressures. Cuong became a forest ranger when U Minh Thuong
forest was declared a National Park, but he had to eventually quit and lease 5
ha on a buffer zone to do farming. He still feels responsible for the forest.
Banh Van Dom, Director of the National Park, said that Cuong helped save over
100 ha of cajeput forest. Cuong’s courage and dedication has won praise from
the Kien Giang Province Forest Protection Department and MARD. Park Director Dom
says, “If everyone loves the forest like Cuong does, the U Minh Thuong
disaster would not have happened.
Source: VNS
Latest Satellite Image
Forest fires and land-use fires in Viet Nam, including the fire disaster zone in U Minh Thuong National Park, acquired by the Moderate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) sensor on 22 April 2002.
Fires can be seen
in southern Viet Nam
Source:
http://rapidfire.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/products_rr.html
Image
search support at:
http://www.uni-freiburg.de/fireglobe/current/MODIS.htm
Precipitation
forecast for Viet Nam for 23 April 2002, 07:00 local time.
(Source: ECPC
Fire Weather Index Forecast)
Precipitation
forecast for Viet Nam for 20-27 April 2002
(Source: ECPC
Fire Weather Index Forecast)
(Fire
Weather Index (FWI) forecast for Viet Nam for 23 April 2002, 19:00 local time.
(Source: ECPC
Fire Weather Index Forecast)
Fire
Weather Index (FWI) forecast for Viet Nam for 20-27 April 2002.
(Source: ECPC
Fire Weather Index Forecast)
Fire
Weather Index (FWI) forecast for Viet Nam for 30 March to 27 April 2002.
(Source: ECPC
Fire Weather Index Forecast)
Duff
moisture content (typical for peat-swamp layers) provided
by the ASEAN Fire
Weather Information System
(Source: ASFWIS)
Some visual impressions from the fire sites:
Inferno: Fire blaze in U Minh Thuong National Park. Source: VNS Photo Hoang Tri Dung
Damage control: A canal is dug in an attempt to curb the spread of a wildfire that is devastating the U Minh Thuong National Park. Source: VNA/VNS Photo by Trang Duong
For the
a local situation assessment published by Viet Nam News: See the story “All
hands on deck as forest fire rages on” (6 April 2002):
http://vietnamnews.vnagency.com.vn/2002-04/05/Stories/03.htm
For a
local weather forecast predicting the continuation of the dry spell, see:
http://vietnamnews.vnagency.com.vn/2002-04/03/Stories/11.htm
For GFMC reports on fires in Viet Nam see:
A Fire Problem Analysis (IFFN No. 7 - August 1992)
Fire Management Assessment Tram Chim National Park, Dong Thap Province,
Viet Nam
(IFFN No. 26 - January 2002)
See
photographs that includes effects of fire in Melaleuca forests of Vietnam:
GFMC
Photo Archive Viet Nam
First Report by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)
Ref: OCHA/GVA 2002/0081
OCHA Situation Report No. 1
Vietnam - Forest Fire
9 April 2002
This report is based on information provided by the UNDP Office in Vietnam, the Disaster Management Unit and media reports.
Event and Impact
1.
A forest fire, that started on 23 March in the 8,000‑hectare U Minh Thuong
National Park in the southern province of Ca Mau, is now raging out of control
and threatens to destroy thousands of hectares of forest.Temperatures
in the heart of the forest have soared to 50 degrees Celsius and reached
thousands of degrees in the 0.5 to 1.5 metre‑thick smouldering peat and
coal layers. The combined high temperatures and strong winds have occasionally
produced large fireballs, endangering the remaining forest and hampering efforts
to extinguish the fire. A prolonged drought has severely limited the
availability of fresh water, which is hindering fire‑fighting efforts. U
Minh Thuong Forest is ranked as the world's second richest and largest mangrove
forest after the Amazon rain forest in Brasil.
2.
The fire is believed to have destroyed over 4,000 hectares of virgin forest.
This will affect the lives of thousands of poor families living in the area, and
will also have significant ecological impacts, including loss of biodiversity
and habitat to local species.
National Response
3.
Thousands of policemen, military, forest rangers and local residents have joined
forces to combat the fire. Fire fighters have isolated approximately 5,000
hectares of virgin and newly planted forest by digging a 6 metre wide, 3
metre deep and 10 metre long canal, along which more than 100 pumps
are running 24 hours a day to provide water for the fire fighting effort. A 10
metre‑wide fire prevention belt is being cleared. So far, digging ditches
around the burning areas has been the only way to halt the spread of the fire.
4.
The police and armed forces were mobilised on Tuesday, 2 April to assist the
fire fighters, and military units are said to be at the forefront of the effort.
5.
The provincial authorities have mobilised all tractors and pumps owned by
residents in neighbouring areas.
General Information
6.
No request for international assistance has been received by OCHA to date.
7.
OCHA is in close contact with the office of the United Nations Resident
Coordinator in Hanoi and will revert with further information.
8.
This situation report, together with further information on ongoing emergencies,
is also available on the OCHA Internet Website at http://www.reliefweb.int
Last report by the Environment News Service
(for photographs: see http://ens-news.com/ens/apr2002/2002L-04-09-02.html)
Fiery Inferno Engulfs Vietnamese National Park
Hanoi,
9 April 2002 - Thousands of policemen, military personnel, forest rangers and
local residents have joined forces to fight a fire eating its way through U Minh
Thuong National Park in the southernmost province of Kien Giang.
The
forest fire, which officials say started on March 23, has been raging out of
control. A report of Vietnam's official news agency VNA today says firefighters
have contained the blaze but not before it destroyed an estimated 4,200 hectares
of peat swamp forest, wiping out about half the national park.
Temperatures
in the fire's core area have hit 50 degrees Celsius and reached thousands of
degrees in the deep layers of burning peat and coal beneath the forest floor.
Combined
soaring temperatures and strong winds have occasionally produced large
fireballs, endangering the remaining forest and hampering efforts to extinguish
the fire.
The
smoke is rising from the U Minh Thuong blaze to join the smoke from many fires
that currently dot the landscape across much of Southeast Asia, filling the
skies with a thick blanket of smoke over much of the region.
This
is normally the dry season, and in addition, a drought that has lasted since the
El Nino weather pattern of 1998 has limited the availability of fresh water,
making firefighting a tough job.
So
far, digging ditches around the burning areas has been the only way to halt the
spread of the fire.
Firefighters
have isolated about 5,000 hectares of
virgin and newly planted forest by digging a six metre wide, three metre deep
and 10 metre long canal, along which more than 100 pumps are running day and
night to provide water for the fire fighting effort. The provincial authorities
have mobilized all tractors and pumps owned by residents in neighbouring areas
to draw water from existing canals criss-crossing the area.
The
national park is part of a large area of seasonally flooded Melaleuca swamp
forest north and west of Ca Mau town near the shores of the Gulf of Thailand.
The peat swamp forests of U Minh comprise a mosaic of forest fragments separated
by rice fields, settlements and canals. The northernmost forest fragment is U
Minh Thuong which normally floods during the rainy season and dries out in the
dry season
Dr.
Julian Thompson, lecturer in physical geography at the University College London
who did research in U Minh Thuong in 2001, says the inner forest or Strictly
Protected Zone of about 8,130 hectares "has been impacted by human
activities such as canal construction and logging in addition to frequent fires.
The impact of these factors has been the erosion of much of the peat layer
around the forest margins."
Describing
the area for the World Conservation Union, Le Dien Duc wrote, "In the past,
this region was famous for its dense Melaleuca forests. However, during the war
years the region suffered serious damage from bombing and the extensive use of
napalm and toxic chemicals, and since then, large areas have been cleared for
timber and agricultural land or destroyed by forest fires. Only some 63,000
hectares of forest remain, and much of this, such as the U Minh Thuong forest,
is in very poor condition."
The cause of the current fire is unknown. Officials say an investigation will take place after the fire is out.