Rajbiraj, March 31

With summer beginning, incidents related to fire have increased in Saptari.

Due to lack of resources to control and minimise these incidents along with lack of awareness, fire incidents have increased in different parts of the district.

It is said 79 houses along with property worth Rs 5 crore were reduced to ashes in two months. Fire destroyed property in Kalyanpur, Rayapur, Didhawa, Bathanaha, Pharsaitha, Hanumannagar, Banauli, Madhupatti, Sambhunath, Barmajiya, Aaurahi, Kochabakhari, Gobergadha, Deurali and Birahi Birpur, among other places including in Rajbiraj Municipality.

According to Rajbiraj Municipality’s department of Fire Engine, as many as 18 incidents related to fire were reported in the district in the last two months. Fireman Ghagan Budhathoki said the office sometimes receives information from four to five places in a single day.

Umesh Prasad Yadav, driver of the fire engine, said it was difficult to reach the incident sites as there was only one fire engine in Rajbiraj Municipality.

Section Officer Praphulla Shrestha of the municipality said that of the two fire engines in the municipality, one was yet to be repaired due to lack of money for the last 10 years. “It is very difficult to take the engine into the villages due to difficulty in accessing villages,” he added.

It is said the district disaster rescue committee had decided to add one more fire engine two years ago. However, the decision is yet to be implemented.

Last year, two persons died in 57 fire incidents. Around 290 houses were gutted along with property worth Rs 35 crore.