Air Force helicopters work round the clock as Mount Abu forest fire continues to rage in parts
The fire was first spotted on Friday around 8 am.
A massive forest fire in Rajasthan’s Mount Abu, which broke out on Friday, continued to rage in pockets of the area on Sunday. The Indian Air Force, which has been using two MI-17 V5 helicopters with underslung Bambi buckets to battle the blaze, continued to draw water from the Nakki Lake to put out the flames, NDTV reported.
The district collector of Sirohi, Ashwini Kumar, had earlier said the fire had been controlled. However, fresh fires started at the top of Mount Abu and along Abu Road on Sunday, the English news channel reported. The two aircraft made 19 sorties on Sunday delivering more than 53,000 litres of water since morning. The fire around Arna village was reported to be dangerously close to inhabited area and was being put out on a priority basis, an unidentified defence official told NDTV.
The fire broke out on Friday near the famous tourist spot of Mount Abu View Point, prompting the district authorities to seek the Air Force’s assistance.