The district headquarters of Ilam, Terhathum, Taplejung and Panchthar -- where most houses are made essentially of wood, bamboo and tin -- have already seen deadly fire outbreaks in the last decade. However, local bodies, which have the task of tackling fires, are not yet equipped with fire-brigades.[break]
Locals still rely on old ways of dousing fires -- ferrying water from some reservoirs. They also tend to pull down a few houses to prevent fire from spreading. “We have only narrow and bumpy roads that fire-brigades cannot ply,” Santosh Khatiwada of the Taplejung district chapter of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI) said. “Therefore, we have no option but to use water pipelines.”
The district development committees (DDCs) of Taplejung, Panchthar and Terhathum have not procured even a single fire-brigade so far. They cite a lack of budget. Ilam Municipality had purchased a fire-brigade almost 10 years ago. However, the fire-brigade remains non-operational most of the time. It remained defunct when a fire erupted recently.
Local entrepreneurs in Phidim, district headquarters of Panchthar, had decided to buy a fire-brigade following a massive fire outbreak last year. However, they shelved their plan after calculating that they could not afford to buy and operate the fire-brigade. “After our plan failed, Nepal Red Cross Society in Panchthar pledged to install a 2000-liter water tank, a pump and pipes,” Mitra Kafle, a local resident and central committee member of the FNCCI, told Republica.
Kafle flayed the government for not giving priority to fire hazard in the eastern hill towns. “It´s high time we focused seriously on saving our towns from fire,” he said, adding, “We cannot protect our property solely with water meant for drinking.”
Big fires in the eastern hill towns are nothing new. In 2002, fire devastated 86 houses, causing damage amounting to millions, in Myanglung, district headquarters of Terhathum. The following year 45 houses were gutted in Phungling. Last year, 18 houses were reduced to ashes in Ilam. Ten years ago, 25 houses burnt down in Pashupatinagar, another town in Ilam.
Related story
Govt allocates only Rs 2.4 billion in FY 2023/24 for New Town P...
