Johor firemen fight to put out forest fire in Iskandar Puteri
JOHOR BARU Firefighters have been trying to put out a massive forest fire that started last week in Johor's Iskandar Puteri district.
The fire, which started in dry weather on Friday, has engulfed 98ha of forest.
Johor Fire and Rescue Department director Yahaya Madis said some 79 firemen have been fighting to prevent the fire from spreading further and since Sunday, have extinguished 45 per cent or 44ha of the area on fire.
"Today (Sunday) it drizzled a little and this did not have much effect on the operation. Based on the current situation, it is expected to take four days for the fire to be extinguished," national news agency Bernama quoted him as saying.
"But if the 'flooding' technique can be completed immediately, there is a possibility that the fire will be extinguished soon."
He did not elaborate on this technique.
He also said five 20,000-litre capacity water tankers were used to transport water taken from nearby fire hydrants to extinguish the fire.
The fire also led to the closure of a school by the Johor Regent, Tunku Mahkota Ismail Ibni Sultan Ibrahim.
A statement posted on his official Facebook page said that Tunku Ismail visited SMK Tanjung Adang, which has 200 students. During the visit, he decreed that the school temporarily close for the sake of the students' health, The Star reported.
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