Efforts underway to douse Tibetan bush fire
Efforts underway to douse Tibetan bush fire
03 January 2006
published by http://news.webindia123.com
A bush fire has been raging in a small Tibetan county since Sunday but rescue work has been extremely slow due to the lack of water.
Officials, police and some 600 voluntary fire fighters are struggling to douse the blaze.
The fire broke out at 12.50 p.m. Sunday in Tingri county in Xigaze, at the foot of Mount Qomolangma, the Tibetan name for Everest.
By midday Monday, the fire had destroyed more than 100 hectares of bush cover, an official with Tingri county government said.
The official himself had been informed belatedly about the situation because the site where the blaze occurred is far from the county seat and has poor communication access.
High winds began sweeping the area Monday afternoon and this would make the rescue work even more difficult, the official said.
