Mangaluru, Mar 4: Even as the Indian Meteorological Department has issued a heatwave warning for the coastal region in Karnataka, wildfires have been reported in three locations in Ujire area of Dakshina Kannada district triggering panic among locals.
The cause of the latest fires is yet to be ascertained.
Locals were alarmed as a large hill near Kodamballi in Mundaje village caught fire on Friday, March 3, apparently due to sparks from an electrical transformer nearby.
However, over 50 people gathered to help and successfully extinguished the fire. Fire service personnel were able to put out the remaining spots on the hill by evening.
In another incident, a forest area spanning over five to six acres in Ninnigallu of Ujire caught fire. The fire service personnel and locals worked together and were able to bring the fire under control.
Additionally, a fire broke out behind an old lodge near the highway in the old market area of Ujire, causing concern among the locals. With the timely assistance of fire service personnel, the fire was extinguished before it could spread and cause significant damage.
DFO Bharat Kumar, accompanied by Mescom JE Krishnegowda and social worker Sachin Bhide, visited the affected areas to assess the damage caused by the fire.
Meanwhile, the IMD has warned that hot winds are likely to blow on March 4 in some parts of coastal districts of Dakshina Kannada and Udupi. This warning comes as the temperature in some parts of North India has already increased, including Pune, Madhya Pradesh, and Rajasthan.
According to meteorologists, this is the first time in recent years that the IMD has issued a hot air warning for the coastal Karnataka. The hot winds are expected to blow towards the coastal areas of Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts, leading to a rise in temperature in the region.
Over two weeks ago, the forest officials of the Belthangady Wildlife Range, had managed to douse the fire that had spread over approximately 10 acres of grassland. Belthangady Wildlife Range, range forest officer Swathi L, who led the operations, said that the forest fire was first reported at two places in Hoovinakoplu, followed by Urjalubetta in the Aladangady section. “At Urjalubetta, we have doused the fire at the base of the hill.
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