The two-day fire at Mt. Kanlaon Natural Park in Negros Occidental hit 48.96 hectares of grass and forest land, La Castellana Mayor Rhummyla Mangilimutan said on Sunday, March 17.
The fire started at Purok Pastohan at Biak na Bato Thursday morning and the Bureau of Fire Protection declared the fire out at 12:30 p.m. Friday, March 15. It was initially estimated to have hit 35 hectares.
However, the MPNP park superintendent on Saturday reported that the fire hit 48.96 hectares in barangays Biak na Bato and Masulog, 16.78 hectares of which is in the strict protection zone, Mangilimutan said.
The grass fire covered 27.09 hectares and the forest fire – 21.87 hectares, she added.
The fire site is a two-hour climb from the Mt. Kanla-on Natural Park Administration Center making it difficult for firefighters and volunteers to carry water to the area, Joan Nathaniel Gerangaya, Provincial Environment and Natural Resources Officer, said on Friday.
They instead created a fire line to prevent the fire from spreading to other areas.*