Huge fire destroys trees in Jordan nature reserve

AMMAN — A huge fire broke out in a Jordanian nature reserve, destroying nearly 1,630 dunums of plantation, according to a press release by the Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature (RCSN).اضافة اعلان

The statement quoted a reserve official as saying it is believed that the fire was ‘’deliberate’’.



Here’s a text of the statement:

 Yesterday evening, a fire broke out in the Yarmouk Nature Reserve, on approximately 1,630 dunums of the reserve’s land, before being controlled by the relevant authorities in cooperation with the Reserve staff and the local community.

The reserve’s staff were able to avoid a real catastrophe due to their attentiveness and rapid reporting of the fire, in addition to cooperating with civil defense cadres and security agencies, which controlled the fire, thereby preventing the damage from worsening.

Othman Al-Tawalbeh, Protected Areas Manager and Spokesperson, said preliminary indications show that the fire may be made up, especially since the area where the fire started is within the protected areas, which is not entered by visitors or even many of the reserve’s staff, the fire took place at night, indicating that the person who entered that area had prior intentions.

Tawalbeh said that initial estimates indicate that the fire damaged about 1630 dunums in the reserve, about 500 Quercus ithaburensis trees, 50 oak trees, and 2,000 small bushes.



He explained that the accounting of damage is still ongoing to determine the exact figures as well as the magnitude of the loss of wild species as a whole from animals and birds, which may extend beyond the fire.

He demand forming an expanded committee comprising the RSCN and all relevant authorities to determine the causes of the fire and punish the perpetrators in the event that it is proven to be made-up and under any circumstances. 


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