Fire Dept Puts Out 80 Pct Of Secondary Forest Blaze In Kuala Kubu Baharu

KUALA LUMPUR, July 23 (Bernama) -- The Malaysian Fire and Rescue Department (JBPM) has put out about 80 per cent of the fire at a secondary forest in Jalan Genting, Kuala Kubu Baharu today.

Selangor Zone 6 chief senior fire superintendent II Mustakim Rimon said they received an emergency call from the landowner about the blaze at 6.26 pm yesterday and have been fighting the fire non-stop since.

"Upon reaching the location some 30 minutes later, we found that the fire involved a 60-acre secondary forest, and not a forest reserve,” he said when contacted by Bernama today.

Thirty-seven personnel from the Kuala Kubu Baharu and Rawang fire stations were mobilised to control the blaze from spreading.

However, he said the fire engine could not reach the site due to the lack of access roads, resulting in the personnel having to carry the equipment manually for about two kilometres.

"The JBPM Air Unit was also mobilised using the AW189 helicopter due to the lack of water resources in the area, which is quite remote. A total of 6,000 litres of water was used for aerial firefighting,” he said.

The JBPM also used drones equipped with heat-sensing cameras to identify hotspots for more focused firefighting.

"Our main challenge included the hilly terrain and hot, windy weather that speeds up the spread of the fire,” he said as he advised the public not to carry out open burning, especially in high-risk areas.

A secondary forest refers to a forest area that has regrown after a significant disturbance, such as logging, fire or human activities, and is generally more prone to burning compared to primary forest.

-- BERNAMA