According to Lao Dong's records on the morning of October 21, the fire that broke out on Son Dao Mountain, Thuy Duong Commune, Thuy Nguyen District, Hai Phong City on the afternoon of October 20 was controlled and completely extinguished by the authorities. The fire burned down many areas of trees, and some large trees were broken due to the heat of the fire.
Mr. Nguyen Van Tuyen, head of Nui 2 village, Thuy Duong commune, said that since 10:00 a.m. on October 20, there were signs of smoke rising from Son Dao mountain. At around 2:00 p.m., a fire broke out and spread to the surrounding area, including the protective forest used by people to grow trees. At around 10:00 p.m. the same day, the fire was extinguished.
Ms. Vu Thi Mau, a resident of Nui 2 village, Thuy Duong commune, Thuy Nguyen district, shared that her family manages more than 2 hectares of forest on Son Dao mountain, growing trees such as acacia, pine and jackfruit. After storm No. 3, nearly 1 hectare of trees were broken, the broken trees were collected by people to make dry firewood.
"The fire burned more than 1 hectare of crops, but the family's forest was abandoned and no longer exploited, so although the burned area was large, the economic damage to the family was insignificant," said Ms. Mau.
According to information from Hai Phong City Police, at around 2:05 p.m. on October 20, a vegetation fire broke out in Son Dao mountain area, in Thuy Duong, Thuy Son, and Hoa Binh communes (Thuy Nguyen district).
Upon receiving the news, the People's Committee of Thuy Nguyen district quickly mobilized forces including leaders of the district People's Committee, the District Military Command, the 126th Naval Brigade, the 151st Regiment, the 238th Regiment, the 836th Regiment, the Fire Prevention and Rescue Police Team (Thuy Nguyen District Police), the Fire Prevention and Rescue Team of Region 5 (Fire Prevention and Rescue Police Department), the authorities and people, and the militia and self-defense forces of the communes with a total of nearly 300 people; along with many fire trucks and fire fighting equipment to urgently approach the scene and focus on extinguishing the fire.
By 9:30 p.m. the same day, the fire in the ground cover was basically controlled and extinguished. To prevent the fire from re-igniting, the authorities continued to extinguish the embers in the area where the fire occurred and assigned people to stand guard.
The leader of Thuy Nguyen District People's Committee said that due to the dry and hot weather, especially after storm No. 3, many trees on the hill were broken and fell, creating thick layers of dry firewood, so the fire flared up fiercely, creating a high, thick column of smoke as well as prolonging the firefighting time. The fire area is estimated at about 5 - 7 hectares.
Speaking with Lao Dong, Mr. Le Van Huy - Chairman of Thuy Duong Commune People's Committee said that after extinguishing the fire on Son Dao mountain on the evening of October 20, the local government had sent people to stay on duty and watch to ensure the fire did not flare up again.
Currently, authorities are continuing to investigate the cause and estimate the damage after the fire.
