Trekkers evacuated from Mt. Apo Sunday watch from safe distance the burning portion of the country’s highest peak in these photos snapped by Ryan Mark Asturias, a climber from Koronadal City.
Kidapawan City, North Cotabato – The forest fire in the North Cotabato side of Mt. Apo has been contained as of yesterday afternoon.
It, however, continues to rage in the Davao del Sur side of the country’s highest peak, according to latest reports.
Joey Recemilla, Kidapawan city tourism officer, said at least 200 volunteers from the towns of Makilala and Magpet and this city were deployed in the base camp in Lake Venado to ensure that the fire would not reach the Kidapawan-Magpet-Makilala (KMM) eco-tourism triangle.
Recemilla said the volunteers, armed with spades, rakes, bolos and chainsaws, conducted clearing operations and built a buffer line to stop the fire from spreading to the remaining flora and fauna around the lake, and the 72-hectare reforestation area of the Energy Development Corporation operating the Mount Apo Geothermal
Power Plant in the North Cotabato side.
The buffer line is about 10 meters wide and at least 200 meters long, according to Recemilla.
“The volunteers cleared the peripheries of any dried materials. Some trees were cut to build a fire line,” Recemilla said.
He added that local government units provided logistics and food to volunteers who stayed at the base camp for almost 48 hours since the fire broke out on Saturday afternoon.
“We already contained the fire. The KMM eco-tourism triangle is now safe, but we are still on a tight watch, especially since the fire is still ongoing in the Davao side, and the wind direction keeps on changing,” Recemilla explained.
All 120 trekkers who used the Kidapawan trails have been accounted for and have safely returned to their places of origin.
“They are all safe. None of them was hurt while going down the peak after the fire broke out,” Recemilla said.
Kidapawan City Mayor Joseph Evangelista has recommended the suspension of the Mt. Apo Summer Trek, saying all Kidapawan trails will be closed to climbers
this summer to prevent a similar emergency situation.
He said it would take at least five years to rehabilitate the mountain. /INQUIRER