Seven to 12 Hectares of Anzali Lagoon Reeds Burned in Fire
On the third day of the fire at Anzali Lagoon, a water-bombing aircraft was finally dispatched to the area. The director general of crisis management in Gilan says that at least seven hectares of the lagoon’s reeds have been burned and damaged so far.
According to local authorities, the fire at Anzali Lagoon started on Monday evening, September 7, and due to the area’s natural characteristics, extinguishing and putting out the fire has faced difficulties.
According to ISNA news agency, Amir Moradi, director general of crisis management in Gilan, said on Wednesday that the reeds in the Charaghposhtan area on the edge of Anzali Lagoon flared up again yesterday evening, and the fire that continued until this morning subsided with the morning fog.
Yesterday, Mohammad Mehdi Nouri Alaqaa, head of the Fire Extinguishing Control and Support Center at the Ministry of Defense, announced the dispatch of a water-bombing helicopter to Anzali and said: “This fire has occurred in parts of Anzali Lagoon where the coverage is reeds, and it is not possible for fire trucks to traverse for ground fire extinguishing.”
Amir Moradi also said that on Wednesday noon, an Ilyushin water-bombing aircraft finally arrived at Gilan Airport and is assisting local forces in extinguishing the fire.
This is the same aircraft that was recently dispatched to Turkey to help extinguish the devastating fires there, and for this reason, its late arrival in Gilan province has faced considerable ridicule and criticism on social media.
The director general of crisis management in Gilan, who had previously predicted that 10 hectares of Anzali Lagoon would suffer damage from the fire, says: “Approximately seven hectares of the lagoon’s reeds have been burned and fortunately, timely measures and extensive efforts by the relevant crisis management agencies prevented the predicted damage.”
Intentional and Recurring Fires
Akbar Sobhani, prosecutor of Anzali, says the fire at the lagoon was intentional and law enforcement has arrested two people in connection with this incident who are under surveillance for case completion. The public and revolutionary prosecutor of Gilan province said the number of suspects has increased to five people. According to him, one person has been arrested and four are under surveillance.
According to IRNA, this judicial official said in this regard: “Opportunistic individuals whose land is adjacent to the lagoon set these reeds on fire to expand their encroachments toward the lagoon. These people are seeking to increase their encroachments, and the source of deliberate fires in recent days and years is human factors.”
The regional government news agency announced the damage caused by the fire as 12 hectares and said that on the third of September, five hectares of reeds in the Shanghayi Parde village of Anzali also fell victim to fire, with evidence indicating the fire was intentional aimed at land usurpation.
According to this report, in 2019, 10 hectares of Anzali Lagoon reeds also caught fire, which local authorities described as intentional and motivated by land usurpation.
Anzali Lagoon, covering an area of approximately 20,000 hectares, was registered in the list of international and protected wetlands in 1975, but is currently facing various crises, including reduced water intake and severe pollution.
Source: DW
