Fire destroys 50 acres in Knuckles Range

Disna MUDALIGE

A sudden fire in the Knuckles Range destroyed about 50 acres of forest land, a spokesman for Ududhumbara Police told the Daily News yesterday. He said that the fire erupted around 8 pm on Saturday.

He said that the Police with the support of Army, Forest Conservation Department and the public were engaged in dousing the fire.

Kandy Disaster Management Centre spokesman Major Amal Herath said about 75 army personnel were dispatched to the location.

The Police said that the fire erupted in a slope of a mountain, making it difficult to approach the location to douse the fire. "At the moment we are trying to control the fire from spreading," he noted.

The police suspected that someone in the area had put fire to the forest. Further investigations are on to find out the cause of the fire. The Knuckles Conservation Forest was declared a World Heritage by UNESCO in 2010.