More than 2,200 fire-fighters have succeeded in putting out a forest fire in northeast China, less than a day after it was reported.
The team of professional fire-fighters, armed police and civilians were mobilized to extinguish the blaze at Hongxing Forest Farm, Yichun City, Heilongjiang Province, after the alarm was raised at 12:47 p.m. Tuesday.
Yichun fire-fighting headquarters is still assessing the area of forest destroyed by the fire.
About 400 kilometers southeast of Yichun, 200 firefighters put out another fire in Helinwan Forest Farm, in Suiyang City, on Tuesday after it burned across 14 hectares.
No injuries at either site had been reported and no residential areas were at risk, said officials at Suiyang Forestry Bureau and Yichun fire-fighting headquarters.
The fire and forestry authorities were still investigating the causes of the fires, said officials.
Spring is a dry season in Heilongjiang, which receives little rainfall, said Wang Ren, director of Yichun fire-fighting headquarters.
Yichun has one of China's first forest farms. The city has produced 240 million cubic meters timber for the past 60 years.
(Xinhua News Agency May 20, 2009)
