TUBA, BENGUET — With four forest fires recorded in Tuba, Benguet in February, the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) is urging residents to stop slash-and-burn farming, known locally as kaingin, to avoid sparking even more fires.

Tuba Deputy Fire Marshal SFO3 Jerry Sanoy on Friday emphasized the difficulties faced by their personnel when fighting fire in mountainous areas.

“Humihingi kami ng tulong na pagsabihin ang mga relatives na mostly farmers na iwasan ang pagsusunog ng grass sa mga farm. Mahirap. Hindi makapunta ang fire truck sa bundok,” he said. 

(We are asking for help, please tell your relatives to avoid burning grass in their farms. It’s really difficult for us. Fire trucks don’t have access to the mountain.)

More Cordillera forest fires to break out in coming days: BFP

Videos from BFP-Tuba show how firefighters manually extinguish forest fire through swatting and using soil to put out the rapidly spreading flames.

Sunog sa Tuba, Benguet, mano-manong inaapula

Sunog sa Benguet patuloy na inaapula

“Kailangan ng maraming energy kasi yung terrain nga matarik. Inclination ng bundok is 85 degrees. Yung condition ay malamig at maaraw kaya nagco-contribute ito sa physical condition. Sasakit ang ulo mo.”

(You have to use a lot of energy because the terrain is really steep. The mountain’s inclination is 85 degrees. The weather condition is cold but sunny so it can really cause a headache.)

The prevailing strong El Niño increases the possibility of forest fires.

State weather bureau PAGASA has yet to declare the start of the dry season.

Drought affects 41 provinces as El Niño heats up

“Itong municipality of Tuba, malawak ang forested area. Mostly mountainous, makapal ang grass. Ngayon we are experiencing El Niño kaya dry ang grass which is prone to catch fire.”

(The municipality of Tuba is a widely forested area. It is mostly mountainous with thick grass. This is why it is really prone to catching fire.)

Forest fire sumiklab sa kabundukan ng Benguet

Meanwhile, BFP personnel in the municipality of Itogon, despite the equally mountainous area, are able to fight the flames using their fire trucks.

Fortunately, the Cordillera Administrative Region remains casualty-free despite recording over 60 incidents of forest fire since the start of the year.

The total damage in terms of land area and trees have yet to be reported by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

Forest fires are among the effects of extreme weather exacerbated by climate change.