Malaysia: Firefighters use water bombing against raging Gunung Baling Fire

Bernama New Straits Times 8 Feb 19;

ALOR STAR: Firefighters are conducting water bombing to put out a raging fire on Gunung Baling.

A Mi-17 helicopter is being used to conduct the water bombing to put out the fire which started on Wednesday evening and has spread across 2.8 hectares, Baling Fire and Rescue Station chief Mohd Jamil Mat Daud said today.

He said that since the firefighting operation resumed at 8am today, seven to eight instances of water bombing had been completed.

“The weather this morning is fine. It is feared that it will become hot in the afternoon. We are attempting to use the water bombing method to put out three more large spots of fires,” he said when contacted by Bernama.

Jamil said the fire at the peak of the mountain had been extinguished by firefighters who had trekked up there with bags of water.

Twenty firefighters are involved in the operation, and they are assisted by more than 50 personnel from various agencies as well as mountain guides.

Jamil said the Kedah Fire and Rescue Department had dug two sources of spring water near the location of the fires to facilitate the work of the firefighters.

There are also two other sources of water, about four to five kilometres away – a pond adjacent to the Baling District Police headquarters and a river, he added.

The firefighters faced an uphill task yesterday as they also had to battle the hot weather and strong winds.

The cause of the fire has yet to be ascertained but the firefighters did not rule out the possibility of it having been triggered by some mountain climbers. — BERNAMA

Hot weather, strong winds reignite Gunung Baling fire
Bernama New Straits Times 9 Feb 19;

ALOR SETAR: Several spots of fire, which had been put out in Gunung Baling, reignited today due to the hot weather and strong winds, said Baling Fire and Rescue Station chief Mohd Jamil Mat Daud.

However, he said these spots of fire were at nearby areas and the situation was under control, with the fire brigade continuing its operation to douse the pockets of fire using the land route.

“This morning, we used a MI-17 helicopter to trace and extinguish the spots of fire in areas which were difficult to gain access to as that was also when it was not too hot and the wind was not too strong.

“But we had to stop using the helicopter earlier than expected following strong winds in the afternoon. Other than using the fire beater and jet shooter, we also used the Aerial Ladder Platform (ALP),” he said when contacted by Bernama today, adding that they would continue to monitor the situation to ensure it did not spread to the industrial and residential areas.

“This evening, it looked like it was going to rain but so far it hasn’t. Heavy rain will help speed up the fire-extinguishing process.”

The cause of the fire, which started on Wednesday, has yet to be ascertained but firefighters did not rule out the possibility of it having been triggered by some mountain climbers. – Bernama