Alishan Mountain burned for 5 days, scholars on the island: do not rule out a man-made disaster
[Global Times reporter Zhang Ruo] A forest fire broke out in Alishan, Chiayi, Taiwan. It has entered the 5th day on the 22nd and was basically extinguished.
As of the 21st, there have been 35 sorties of helicopter sprinklers.
Li Dingzhong, deputy director of the Chiayi Forestry District Management Office of the Taiwan Forestry Bureau, said that a forest fire broke out at about 2 pm on the 18th near the 69 kilometers of Alishan Highway, and the burning area was about 1.6 hectares on the 21st.
Affected by forest fires, Alishan Highway between 66 kilometers and 76 kilometers will be closed on the morning of the 19th and will be open for traffic only at 3 pm on the 20th.
The cherry blossoms are currently in full bloom, which is the peak tourist season in Alishan.
Affected by the fire, the number of tourists to Alishan Forest Recreation Area was only 2,707 on the 20th, and on the 21st, the number of tourists increased significantly to 7,441.
Taiwan’s “General Administration of Highways of the Ministry of Communications” stated on the 22nd that in response to the slowdown of the epidemic, the maximum number of people controlled in the Alishan Forest Recreation Area will be adjusted from 4,355 to 8,155. Into a large number of flower viewing crowds and car crowds."
Regarding the cause of the Alishan forest fire, Li Dingzhong said that the probability of the Alishan fire caused by natural factors is very low.
He cited the sacred tree of Alishan as an example. Only the sacred tree was scorched by lightning in the past, which did not cause a forest fire; because when thunderstorms in mountainous areas were heavy rain, the environment was humid and the fire could not burn.
Regarding local people speculating that the fire was caused by tourists throwing cigarette butts, he said that there is no evidence, but in the past, forest fires were mostly caused by human factors, including campfires that were not completely extinguished during camping or were caused by accidental burning of weeds and waste. .
Taiwan’s "United Daily News" analyzed that after the forest fire broke out in Alishan, the Hsinchu Jianshi forest area also caught fire. Due to the drought and water shortage period, the development of forest fires is worrying.
The cause of the fire has yet to be clarified, and scholars say that it is not ruled out as a man-made disaster.