More than 1,600 people were dispatched to control a fire that broke out yesterday and destroyed some 20 hectares of pine forest in the Hau Loc and Hoang Hoa districts.

Le Quoc Viet, deputy head or head of the Thanh Hoa Province Department of Forest Protection, said authorities, residents and firefighters had raced to control the fire, as temperatures rose to 40 degrees Celsius. The sloping terrain of the pine forest made conditions even more difficult for those trying to control the blaze.

Luu Huy Binh, head of Hoang Hoa District Police, said pine resin is highly inflammable, and therefore, the pine trees had added fuel to the fire.

Authorities have not identified the cause of the fire, but forests in the area are at risk due to the hot weather.

VNS