Wildfires tear through Sarawak as heat persists

MIRI – Sarawak’s Fire and Rescue Department is getting busy again with several parts of the state engulfed in wildfires.

Due to the heat, fires have been cropping up across forests in northern and central Sarawak.

In Miri, some 3ha of land along Jalan Bakam caught on fire yesterday, which has since been doused by the district’s Fire and Rescue Department.

In Daro, firefighters tackled a wildfire that had spread to the peatland adjacent to Kg Sedi.

Some 20ha of forest has gone up in smoke, said state Assistant Corporate Affairs and Public Communications Unit Minister Abdullah Saidol.

“Villagers must stop open burning as the weather gets drier. They set small fires here and there to clear their land and burn waste. However, the fire spreads very fast in this dry weather,” he said.

Abdullah, who is also Semop assemblyman, visited the site with Daro Fire and Rescue Department personnel, calling for concerted efforts to monitor the area.

He did not rule out the possibility of wildfires becoming a problem in more districts as the dry season sets in. – The Vibes, August 1, 2021