Kuala lumpur:: The forest fire in Mae Hong Son has been partially brought under control, but vigilance is still required to prevent a resurgence.
According to Thai News Agency, helicopters have continuously dropped water in 63 flights, totaling 31,500 liters, helping to control most of the fires within targeted areas. However, close monitoring remains in place as steep mountainous areas are still at risk of re-ignition and could impact PM2.5 levels in local communities.
Mr. Suchart Chomklin, Minister of Natural Resources and Environment, revealed that he continues to closely monitor and be vigilant regarding the forest fire situation in Mae Hong Son province. He also expressed continued support and encouragement to the officials working in the area, as the situation has not yet fully subsided and continues to affect the livelihoods, health, and environment of the general public.
A report from the Mae Hong Son Provincial Wildfire Prevention and Mitigation Operations Center indicates that aircraft from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment have integrated their efforts with relevant agencies, including the Mae Sariang Branch of the Protected Area Management Office 16, the Mae Hong Son Forest Resource Management Office 1, the Mae Hong Son Provincial Natural Resources and Environment Office, Mae Surin Waterfall National Park, and local administrative authorities, to intensively support wildfire suppression efforts.
In the morning, the Northern Operations Center, along with helicopter units 1110 and 5119, held a planning meeting with the Governor of Mae Hong Son Province and relevant agencies to assess the wildfire situation in Mae Hong Son and Pai districts. It was found that the fires were spreading in steep mountainous areas, making them difficult to control and threatening to expand. This resulted in large amounts of smoke drifting into residential areas, contributing to persistently high levels of PM2.5.
The meeting therefore established guidelines for using aircraft to support ground missions, focusing on dropping water to extinguish fires in mountaintop areas and high-risk zones, in order to quickly control the situation and prevent it from spreading to nearby areas.
Later in the afternoon, helicopters H.T.S. 1110 and 5119 continued their water-dropping missions to extinguish the wildfires. Helicopter H.T.S. 1110 conducted 40 flights, dropping a total of 20,000 liters of water, while helicopter H.T.S. 5119 conducted 23 flights, dropping a total of 11,500 liters of water. In total, 63 flights were conducted, dropping a total of 31,500 liters of water. The operation successfully brought the wildfire under control and extinguished most of its target areas before the mission was completed in the evening. However, officials are still closely monitoring the situation as there is still a risk of the wildfire reigniting and spreading to surrounding areas.
Mr. Suchart stated that the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment will continue to fully control the wildfire and haze situation, integrating all sectors to expedite the resolution of the situation and minimize the impact on the public.