54 sorties conducted over four days as aerial and ground teams work to contain blaze in East Siang district
Helicopters of the Indian Air Force carried out an intensive aerial firefighting operation in East Siang district of Arunachal Pradesh, dropping around 1.62 lakh litres of water over four days to help contain a major forest fire, officials said on Thursday.
The operation began on March 8 after the district administration reported a wildfire in the Mebo circle and requested aerial support. The request was forwarded by the state’s civil aviation department to the Ministry of Defence and the Eastern Air Command, following which IAF helicopters were deployed to assist in firefighting efforts.
According to officials, the helicopters conducted 54 sorties, including aerial reconnaissance, water-lifting trials and repeated water drops. The water used for the operation was sourced from the Siang River, enabling rapid response to flames in difficult-to-reach forest areas.
State disaster management secretary Dani Sulu said the aerial water drops were mainly targeted at controlling fires in remote forest locations and areas close to human settlements.
The aerial operation was supported by extensive ground efforts involving district authorities, the incident command unit in Mebo, the civil aviation department, and state fire and emergency services. Personnel from the Sigar Military Station, teams from neighbouring districts, and members of the State Disaster Response Force also joined the operation.
Additional support came from firefighters from Assam, local volunteers including Aapda Mitras, and villagers led by gaon buras (village elders). A team from the National Disaster Response Force was kept on standby from March 10 as a precautionary measure.
Officials said the wildfire affected approximately 140 hectares of reserve forest and about 200 hectares of community land, farmland and orchards in the Sigar, Ralling and Mebo areas. Despite the scale of the fire, authorities confirmed that no casualties or livestock losses were reported.
Authorities added that the combined efforts of aerial firefighting, ground operations and heavy rainfall on Wednesday night helped largely bring the blaze under control.
The swift response highlights the coordination between defence forces, disaster management agencies and local communities in tackling natural disasters in remote regions of the country.
IAF Helicopters Drop 1.62 Lakh Litres of Water to Battle Arunachal Forest Fire
