OUR REPORTER AIZAWL, APRIL 26
More than 450 fire incidents have been reported in various parts of Mizoram claiming at least 7 lives and injuring 11 others since 2019, a fire statistic recorded by Fire and Emergency Services of the state home department said.
According to the statistics, at least 459 fire incidents were reported from January, 2019 to March, 2021 and 113 of them were house fires while the rest 346 were forest fires.
More than 26.43 crore properties were damaged in the flame and over Rs 26.77 crore worth of properties have been salvaged during the given period, the data revealed. With a 54-year-old man, who was charred to death on April 15 this year, at least 7 people have been killed by fire since 2019, it said.
128 fire incidents, including 82 forest fire, were reported in 2019 and 168, including 131 were forest fire were reported in 2020, it said. During the current year till March, at least 163 fire incidents, including 133 forest fires, have occurred in various parts of the state. 3 people died of fire in 2019 while 4 others were killed during this year till 15 April. More than 30 people have been killed in various fire incidents since 2012, according to officials. Fire and Emergency Services director C. Lalthanmawia said that the number of forest fire is comparatively high this year against last year.
While forest fire occurred on 50 occasions in three months between January and March in 2020, the number of forest fire has already reached 133 during January to March this year, he said. He suspects the practice of slash and burn (jhum) cultivation as the main cause of forest fires in the state.
At present, there are 14 fires stations across the state and the government is making efforts to set up new fire stations in three new districts- Hnahthial, Saitual and Khawzawl, Lalthanmawia said.
(Source: The Mizoram Post Vol. 18 Issue 314 Aizawl Tuesday 27 April 2021 http://www.themizorampost.net/page-view?date=27-04-2121&page_no=1)