Japan’s largest fire in three decades has already consumed 2,100 hectares and remains active – Observer

The largest forest fire in Japan in three decades has consumed 2,100 hectares and remains active in Ounato, province of Iwate, extending to a forest and surrounding neighborhoods near the city of Sanriku.

Faced with the propagation of the fire, the city issued new evacuation orders at 7:00 am on Monday (10 pm on Sunday in Lisbon), affecting 1,197 people, who were transferred to 12 centers.

“We are working to extinguish the fire as soon as possible, looking at the safety of residents at the same time,” Government spokesman Yoshimasa Hayashi said at a press conference.

The Japanese National Agency for Fire and Catastrophs Management appealed to firefighters from all over the country to Union of efforts in the fight against fire And especially, in the impediment of the “propagation of fire in the resident area,” added Hayashi.

Nearly 1,700 firefighters from 453 departments The archipelago participate in the operation, supporting local force on the ground and air, with helicopters of the self-defense forces (army).

Since the beginning of the fire last Wednesday, at least one death and the number of houses destroyed ascends to 84, but authorities expect the numbers to increase when it is possible to evaluate the true dimension of the catastrophesince fire -fighting efforts are currently being prioritized.

The southern coast of the province of Iwate, where the city of Sanriku is located, is in Dry Time Alert since February 18a phenomenon that favored the spread of the flames.

The local meteorological observatory provided for the maintenance of dry weather this Monday, although temperatures have passed hot and spring over the weekend to a sharp descent.

Forest Fire, the largest in the country for over three decades, has been raising among residents Memories of the earthquake and tsunami of March 11, 2011who devastated the coast of Ounato, making more than 500 dead and missing, and destroying a large number of houses and buildings.

“It’s as if Tsunami came ahead and the fire behind,” described a 70 -year -old man who lived the 2011 earthquake in statements to the NHK public television station.