DARJEELING, May 2: A forest fire broke out early this morning at Topkey Dara, 3rd Mile, approximately 19 km from Darjeeling, but was thankfully brought under control in the afternoon.
Topkey Dara is situated within the Sinchel Wildlife Sanctuary and is home to a breeding centre for snow leopards and red pandas managed by the Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park (PNHZP). While the fire started just about 1 km away from the breeding centre, no damage was reported there.
According to Uttam Pradhan, ranger of Sinchel East Range, Darjeeling Wildlife Division, the fire likely ignited around 7 am with officials being alerted around 7:20 am by a former forest staff who spotted smoke from Mall Road in Darjeeling. “Acting on the information, we went for inspection and found that fire had started from 3rd Mile and it was spreading towards the breeding centre. Another fire had started at 6th Mile towards the road to Kalimpong. It posed a significant challenges for the fire-fighters to contain two fires,” he said.
Efforts to combat the blaze included using fire extinguishers and a fire tender from Darjeeling fire department. However, due to the reserve fire tender being unavailable, water tanks from nearby sources were requested to supply water. Local police, PNHZP staff, forest department personnel and villagers from nearby areas also joined forces to contain the fire by creating fire lines and cutting grass to prevent its spread.
While the exact cause of the fire remains unknown, Pradhan attributed it to the dry season. He said, “April to May is a very dry season with the jungles also very dry. These past few days have been excessively windy, and a natural fire could have started due to friction caused by the wind and with the forest being dry, a small fire can get out of control.”
Although more than 80 percent of the fire was contained by afternoon, the possibility of ground fires reigniting due to windy conditions remained a concern.
“We will stay vigil throughout the night and there could be the danger of the fire starting again,” he said adding that the extent of area damage could not be ascertained right now.
While there were no human casualties reported, concerns arise for injured wildlife and destroyed bird nests.
