Fourth Day of Forest Fires in Gachsaran

200 hectares of forests and rangelands in Gachsaran County have been burned so far. Local authorities say they have been unable to contain the fire. Local media described the failure to control the fire as “a symbol of managerial incompetence” of officials.

Iranian media have been reporting for four days that the forests and rangelands of Gachsaran County continue to burn, and the dispatch of five water-bombing aircraft and helicopters to extinguish the fire has so far not helped contain it.

According to local officials, more than 200 hectares of forests and rangelands in Gachsaran County have been burned so far.

Vahid Mohammadi Tabar, the general director of crisis management in Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad Province, said on Monday, May 25 (the 5th of Khordad) that the fire in the Kham mountains in Gachsaran and Basht counties, which are under Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad Province, started on Friday, June 2 (the 2nd of Khordad), and the peak of the fires was in the Khang Banar forests, which reignited on Sunday, June 4 (the 4th of Khordad) after being contained.

The general director of crisis management in Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad said rescue teams are being transferred to high altitudes with the help of helicopters from Gachsaran Oil and Gas Company to contain the fire.

Possibility of Arson

Aziz Faali, the deputy coordinator of civil affairs for the governor of Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad, mentioned the possibility of arson regarding the causes of the fire in the province and said that a fact-finding committee consisting of representatives from the governorate, natural resources and watershed management, intelligence, the prosecutor’s office, and the environment has been formed to identify potential violators responsible for the fire in the forests and rangelands of Gachsaran.

Failure to Control Fire Symbolizes Managerial Incompetence

Dana News, a local analytical news portal that has covered the fire news in recent days, described the failure to control the fires in Gachsaran forests as a symbol of the incompetence and inefficiency of the management of Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad Province and Gachsaran County, which has “become a crisis and even a major betrayal and crime against the environment and citizens of this county.”

In a critical report published on this website, it is stated: “It appears that the fire started from the downstream rangelands and due to weak forces and lack of coordination and cooperation between relevant organizations and institutions, the fire spread to the mountains and difficult-to-access areas. Only 20 employees of natural resources and people’s forces were present in the area on the first night, and there were no reports of quick and necessary measures to control the crisis!”

In most reports on forest and rangeland fires in Iran in recent years, weak management, shortage of experienced personnel, and water-bombing aircraft and helicopters to contain fires have been reported.

Many critics say that fighting the fire takes time and the responsible institutions have neither aerial patrols nor helicopters and water-bombing aircraft.

Source: DW