March 08, Solukhumbu: A huge forest fire is raging near Lukla, Tenzing Hillary Airport in Solukhumbu.Chief of the Civil Aviation Authority, Lukla, Dwarika Achhami informed that it has started spreading again due to the fire that came under control last night.
According to the Civil Aviation Authority, Lukla, the airport was closed for about an hour yesterday due to the forest fire at Nakchung near Lukla. According to him, the fire started on Sunday evening at Khumbu Pasang Lhamu Gaonpalika 2 Nakchung.
As the fire was reaching near the settlement, the villagers tried to extinguish the fire on Tuesday with the help of firefighting helicopters. However, the villagers said that there was a problem in controlling the fire due to high winds. On Tuesday, a helicopter dropped 84,000 liters of water from the local Surke River at the site of the fire.
The fire destroyed Laliguras(Nepali), Chiraito(Nepali), and other plants and herbs in the forest area. The cause of the fire could not be ascertained.
