Three arrested for 'igniting' forest fires in Islamabad's Margalla Hills

• Steps taken to keep fire away from residential area: DC.
• Says cases have been lodged against 15 people.
• Ureges people to identify those involved in arson.
  

ISLAMABAD: The district administration of federal capital on Friday took three people into custody on suspicion of Margalla Hills "arson" as authorities continued to battle the forest fires for the fourth consecutive day. 

Since Tuesday, the fire has intermittently erupted in the Islamabad hills. Officials are yet to confirm if the fires are related to the high temperatures or due to arson.  

Confirming the report Islamabad Deputy Commissioner Irfan Nawaz Memon said, “Three persons have been arrested on suspicion of setting fire on Margalla Hills.”

He made the remarks during his interaction with journalists when he reached the spot to review the fire extinguishing process.

Precautionary measures have been taken to keep the fire away from the residential areas, he added. “Helicopters and firefighters are taking part in the fire extinguishing process.”

Doubting about man-made fire, the DC said that cases had been lodged against 15 people two days ago. He further said that more arrests would be made in this regard in days to come.

He urged the people to identify the people involved in the fire.

Meanwhile, a spokesperson of the Capital Development Authority (CDA) said that the fire broke out in Kalingar Valley this morning. 

The three individuals were apprehended at the site of the fire in Kalingar Valley and have been identified, he added. "The suspects have been handed over to the police for further investigation and legal proceedings." 

It is pertinent to mention here that the authorities battled forest fires in multiple areas, including the capital Islamabad, as the country grappled with heatwaves and dry weather.

Parts of the country have seen temperatures as high as 52.2 degrees centigrade (126 F) over the last week with South Asia sweltering in a hotter summer this year — a trend scientists say has been worsened by human-driven climate change.

Plumes of smoke could be seen rising from a raging fire in the hills of Islamabad with temperatures hitting 41 degrees centigrade on Friday afternoon.

"It is difficult to get a fire brigade there; rescue officials are trying how to douse the fire," a police official in Islamabad, Sohail Khan, told Reuters, adding that it was not certain if the fires were heat-related or cases of arson.

A spokesman for the Islamabad police said they were investigating the reasons for the fire and a special team had been formed for the probe by the city's police chief.

A member of the Islamabad Wildlife Board, Waqar Zakaria, said the fire could be a case of "wilful arson", adding that high temperatures have continued longer than usual and May has been drier than normal, leading to fires spreading faster because of dry vegetation.

An area in Punjab close to Islamabad, Kallar Kahar, also saw fire engulf 25 acres of grassland, the province's disaster management (PDMA) said, adding that the flames, which had spread rapidly, had been contained.

"The Kalar Kahar forest fire might be a heat-related eruption," PDMA spokesman Mazhar Hussain told Reuters.

Forest fires were also seen in Lower Dir, 250km northwest of Islamabad, resident Mohammad Jalil told Reuters by phone, adding that the flames had begun engulfing hundreds of trees four days ago and were yet to be controlled.

Pakistan is seen by global organisations as one of the most vulnerable countries to extreme weather and climate change. In 2022, floods wreaked havoc in the country, killing over 1,700 people and displacing millions.

In India, at least 15 people died of suspected heat-stroke on Thursday with the region gripped by a debilitating heatwave expected to continue until Saturday.

— Additional input from Reuters