Fire in the Sian Ka’an reserve consumes two hectares

Tulum, Quintana Roo, (May 20, 2021).- Almost two hectares of vegetation in Tulum’s Sian Ka’an Biosphere Reserve were consumed by a forest fire that started on Tuesday, May 18th, and fortunatley was brought under control on Wednesday afternoon.

Staff of the National Forestry Commission (Conafor), National Guard, Mexican Navy and Civil Protection participated in the firefighting actions. According to the Conafor report, currently 29 forest fires are reported in 10 states across the country; three of them in Quintana Roo.

Erick Noé Pérez Díaz, representative director of the Tulum Fire Department, explained that the rescuers came to the scene after a report to the 911 emergency number on Tuesday night.

He added that after hours of trying to put out the fire, they paralyzed work and applied containment with a guardrail three meters wide and 150 meters long so that the fire could not advance.

The rescuer pointed out that the accident was being monitored all night and in the morning of this Wednesday they continued with the actions to suffocate it, managing to have it under control late in the afternoon. He explained that they used more than 60 thousand liters of water to put out the fire.

Gilberto Gómez Mora, municipal coordinator of Civil Protection in Tulum, reported that this event occurred nine kilometers away from the coastal community of Punta Allen.

Gomez Mora stated that with the support of rescuers and volunteers, it was possible to completely put out the fire and -although it is not an official ruling-, the possible causes are inclined to what was caused. He mentioned that hot spots have no longer been detected, but exhaustive monitoring will be maintained in the area.

Source: La Jornada Maya