Fire Destroys 17 Houses, Eight Tin Sheds, and 10 Cowsheds in Bhojpur

A fire that broke out in Bhojpur on Monday gutted 17 houses, eight tin sheds, and 10 cowsheds, according to the District Police Office, Bhojpur.

The fire, which started in the Iname Community Forest at Parpani Tangtangedanda in Bhojpur Municipality-12, destroyed the homes of Shambhu Chapagain, Sobhit Shrestha, Ram Bahadur Karki, Gopi Krishna Dhamala, Rudra Prasad Dhakal, Tirtha Prasad Subedi, and Govinda Chapagain.

Additionally, the blaze destroyed the houses of Goma Darji, Shekhar Dhamala, and Chandra Prasad Subedi.

In another incident, four houses were reduced to ashes in Dalgaun Kerabari of Ram Prasad Rai Rural Municipality-4. The houses belonged to Kumar Rai, Gajendra Rai, Umesh Rai, and Man Bahadur Tamang, police said. The fire also destroyed the sheds of Chandiraj Rai and Kopila Rai after spreading from a nearby bamboo grove to the human settlement.

Similarly, the fire that broke out in the Jal Singh Community Forest in East Arun Rural Municipality-7 burned down the houses of locals Datta Narayan Shrestha and Raj Kumar Tamang.

The flames also ravaged houses in South Hatuwagadhi Rural Municipality-6, Matokhani. According to the Area Police Office, Ghodetar, the fire caused property damage worth Rs 188,000.

Wildfires are frequently reported in the forests across Nepal with the onset of the dry season. Wildfires were recently reported in Manang and Kavre districts. According to available data, large areas of forestland have been destroyed in bushfires every year.

Seventy-seven people on average have been killed every year in Nepal due to forest and other fire-related incidents, according to government data.

Between 2014 and mid-March 2023, altogether 18,772 fire incidents took place in the country in which at least 769 people were killed and 2,548 injured, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Authority. Financial loss amounting to over Rs 22.23 billion took place during the same period. -- (With inputs from RSS)