Relevant departments at the national and provincial levels formed a verification team to verify the death of 19 people in the Xichang Forest Fire

On the evening of March 30, 2020, the Ningnan County Forest and Grassland Professional Fire Fighting Team went to the fire scene in Jingjiu Township, Xichang to support the "fire". In the early morning of the next day, the fire fighting team encountered a sudden change in wind direction on the way up the mountain, causing 18 firefighters and 1 guide to sacrifice, and 3 firefighters were injured.

According to expert analysis, from the second half of last year to the present, Xichang generally "has the wind from 10 am until night", and the wind is strong. In addition, the influence of the temperature of the fire site is very likely to cause sudden changes in the air flow. Is the timing of the Ningnan County professional fire fighting team uphill? Is there a factor in command errors? Relevant questions are pending.

"At present, the relevant departments at the national and provincial levels have formed a verification team to verify the truth (the sacrifice process of the firefighters). The truth will definitely be restored." On April 5, the Standing Committee of the Xichang Municipal Committee, the Minister of United Front Work, and Lushan Frontal Forest Grassland Fire Extinguished Liu Guangyu, commander of the frontline command, said.

Rangers tossed around notice "retreat"

On the afternoon of March 30, a forest fire broke out in Jingjiu Township, Xichang. He Guiyin, leader of the forest fire grassland professional firefighting team in Ningnan County, and 20 team members went to support. Zhang Minghua, director of the Office of County Forest and Grass Bureau, followed. A person close to the government in Ningnan County told Peng Mei News that Zhang Minghua ’s responsibility was to first connect with Liu Guangyu, member of the Standing Committee of the Xichang Municipal Committee and Minister of United Front Work. Adding trouble to the fire front.

Qiu Wei (pseudonym), the bus driver responsible for transporting firefighters, said that after the car arrived at the Gangyao site at the southern end of Haibin Middle Road in Xichang, there were already two people waiting in Xichang, one of whom was a forest camper Liao Mou from Daying Farm. Liao Mou told Peng Pai News that he received a notice from the farm leader and picked him up at Gang Kiln. At less than 11 o'clock that night, the firefighters were taken to the camp of Daying Farm, where they met the guide Feng Caiyong, and then they went to the Liujiazhuang Caijiaba Reservoir and went up the mountain from here.

The video provided by Qiu Wei to Peng Mei News showed that when the team members got out of the car, there was "low wind" and there was a long line of fire on the top of the mountain in the distance. Chen Yuan (pseudonym), an insider who was present at the time, told Peng Mei News that the arrangement that night was that the professional firefighting team "take the lead" and fired at the forefront, while the Daying Farm Militia team followed and was responsible for "handling" Left fire ". "The routes of the two teams are the same, but the fire team is in the front, and the militia is behind, and the departure is later." Chen Yuan said that the fire team needs to climb the mountain and walk to the fire line. It takes more than an hour for visual inspection. At that time, there was wind, but not much.

Almost an hour after the Ningnan County Fire Fighting Team went up the mountain, Liao Mou, who was guarding the mountain, suddenly heard that the militia behind the fire fighting team shouted "retreat" and "dangerous" and all ran down the mountain. According to a militiaman, shortly after he went up the mountain, the wind became stronger and the fire became more and more intense. Observers at the foot of the mountain called them to inform them to go down quickly. Soon after the team descended, the whole mountain burned up. But there has never been a figure of the Ningnan County Fire Fighting Team.

When going to Gangyao to meet the Ningnan County Fire Fighting Team, Liao Mou left Zhang Minghua on the phone. At 0:23 on March 31, Liao called Zhang Minghua's mobile phone. "Just tell them to hurry down, it's a bit dangerous. No one asked me to do this, I was out of a good intention." Liao Mou introduced, according to his later understanding, Zhang Minghua learned the situation, immediately called the captain He Guiyin, Let him take someone back. He Guiyin replied that he was aware of the danger and was moving down. Ten minutes later, Zhang Minghua dialed back, and the phone was disconnected.

At about 1 o'clock on March 31st, when Qiu Wei and Zhang Minghua returned to the willow stump, the scene was already another scene. The wind was blowing loudly, and the fire seemed to "water" from the top of the mountain, approaching the village at the foot of the mountain . Qiu Wei said that the FireWire is only a few hundred meters away from where the CMB bus is parked, making it difficult for people to approach.

The verification team verifies the sacrifice process of the firefighters

According to the "Xichang Release" report on March 31, after the fire broke out, Xichang City, Liangshan Prefecture established a front-line headquarters to mobilize the professional fire teams from Ningnan and Dechang for support. A person close to the headquarters told Peng Mei News that on March 30th, the Ningnan Fire Fighting Team was indeed arranged by the headquarters to the Xichang Daying Farm where the willow stump is located, but the headquarters was only responsible for the overall mobilization and the specific fire point. It is still clear at the front of the Daying Farm and the local town government that after they arrive, it is mainly their specific arrangements.

He said that when the Ningnan County Fire Fighting Team was mobilized to Daying Farm, the fire there was not the biggest. The most urgent fire situation should be the direction of Xichang College. In addition, the willow stump has a large water source. "But then the wind changed, and the grass on the hills near the willow stumps was very deep. When it was dry, the fire went up very quickly. This may be an important reason for the death of the firefighters," the person said.

On April 1st, Liu Bo, deputy chief engineer of Sichuan Forestry Investigation and Planning Institute, said in an interview with the media that from the second half of last year to now, Xichang generally starts to wind at 10 am, and there are winds and winds at night. In addition, the influence of the temperature of the fire site is very likely to cause sudden changes in the air flow.

Wang Gaochao, deputy director and secretary-general of the Forest and Grassland Fire Prevention Professional Committee, also said in the Sichuan newspaper observation that Liangshan is located in the transition area from the Sichuan Basin to the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, where the mountains are high and the trenches are deep, which is prone to strong winds and the wind direction is always variable. . After the forest fire, the hot air generated by the combustion products rises, and the hot and cold air convection is very easy to "disturbance" the wind direction. In addition to the complex terrain changes, the wind direction is easy to mutate.

Why did the professional firefighting team in Ningnan County go up and down around zero hour, who issued the order, and was the time appropriate? These questions remain to be solved.

In April 5th, Liu Guangyu, member of the Standing Committee of the Xichang Municipal Party Committee, Minister of United Front Work, and Lushan Frontal Forest Grassland Fire Extinguishing Frontline Command, said in an interview with Peng Mei News that the headquarters divided the ignition points into several major areas according to factors such as wind direction, mountain situation, and fire conditions. In the region, the Ningnan County Fire Fighting Team was arranged to go to the corresponding location to fight the fire. It was impossible for individuals to decide and listen to the opinions of professionals.

Surging news noted that on April 2nd, as the front line commander of the fire extinguishment of the forest and grassland on the front of Lushan, Liu Guangyu once said that he should adhere to the professional pre-judgment observations on the spot and focus on fighting the fire in the early morning. 3. A clear division of labor for the entire team. "Extinguishing the fire is generally in the early morning, the golden period from 4 to 10:30 in the morning." Liu Guangyu said.

Why did the firefighters go up the mountain before and after "zero hour"? In this regard, Liu Guangyu explained, "This is just a deployment of power." He stated that he had worked from the grassroots level and had often participated in fire fighting before. "At present, the relevant departments at the national and provincial levels have formed a verification team to verify (the sacrifice process of firefighters). The truth will definitely be restored." Liu Guangyu said.