Staying up all night to keep the forests in Hai Duong peaceful

At 7:30 p.m. on April 15, after a quick dinner, the officers of the Chi Linh City Forest Protection Department immediately checked the vehicles and forest fire prevention and fighting equipment, loaded them onto the vehicle and began their usual forest patrol work. Mr. Nguyen Truong Giang, Deputy Head of the Chi Linh City Forest Protection Department (far right) said that recently, the weather has been harsh, hot and sunny, with no rain, and the risk of forest fires is very high. Since the afternoon of April 15, Hai Duong has raised the forest fire warning level to level V (extremely dangerous level). This is the highest level in the 5-level forest fire forecasting scale in Vietnam. "All officers of the Forest Protection Department have maintained 24/7 duty. During the day, they take turns patrolling, controlling, and performing forest fire prevention tasks according to regulations. At night, they continue to coordinate with functional forces in communes and wards with forest areas to maintain this activity with the highest initiative, determined to minimize possible forest fires," Mr. Giang informed.

Together with the Forest Protection Department officers, in the evening, the functional forces of communes and wards with forest areas in Chi Linh City, including the police, military, grassroots security, militia and self-defense forces, and staff of the Provincial Forest Management Board in charge of the area, also maintained their participation in coordinating forest fire prevention patrols. In the photo: Functional forces of Cong Hoa ward on the way to the gathering place to prepare to patrol the forest

At around 8pm, the forest patrol forces had gathered in large numbers in front of the protective forest near the Chu Van An temple. Tonight, a working group of the Chi Linh Forest Protection Department will coordinate with the functional forces of Cong Hoa ward to patrol the forest in this area. This is one of the 9 key areas for forest fire prevention in Chi Linh city. Everyone carefully checked the equipment they brought, preparing to carry out their duties as usual.

The leaders of Chi Linh City Forest Protection Department requested all members to ensure safety and efficiency while performing their duties.

After a few minutes of discussion, they split into groups and entered the forest.

Flashlights, knives, rakes... are tools that these forces always carry with them during nighttime forest fire prevention patrols.

The sky was pitch black, the terrain in the forest was uneven, the branches were jagged, the undergrowth was thick, but they were not afraid of difficulties. All the locations with high risk of fire had footprints of the forest patrol force.

During patrols, if they encounter areas with many dry branches and thick vegetation, this force will take the opportunity to clear and create a white runway to prevent forest fires from spreading. Over the past 2 months, the forest patrol force of communes and wards in Chi Linh City has coordinated with military units stationed in the area, forest owners... to create firebreaks on an area of ​​more than 469 hectares of forest in 9 key areas for forest fire prevention and fighting. The number of firebreaks created is the largest ever.

After storm No. 3 occurred in September 2024, Hai Duong had about 1,250 hectares of acacia, eucalyptus, and pine forests damaged, mainly in Chi Linh City. Although thousands of people were mobilized to organize two forest cleaning campaigns, the actual area of ​​broken and untreated forest trees is still quite large. Since the beginning of the year, the weather has been less rainy and sunny, causing forest trees and vegetation to dry out and catch fire easily. Therefore, during night patrols, all forces take advantage of the opportunity to clear up broken forest trees, minimizing the risk of forest fires. The work is hard, but no one complains because they consider forest protection a responsibility to the community.

Captain Tran Dinh Ha, an officer of Cong Hoa Ward Police, said that he usually only works 2-3 night shifts per week. For a long time, the forest fire warning level has always been high, so he often stays on duty and participates in patrolling and controlling forest fire prevention. "I have a wife and 2 small children. During this time, I have little time to visit home and feel guilty, but this is one of the most important tasks at present, so all the brothers in the unit are trying and making efforts. I just hope that the forest will be peaceful and recover soon," said Mr. Ha.

Ms. Nguyen Thuy Anh, an officer of Nam Chi Linh Forest Management Station, was the only woman participating in the forest patrol and control team on the evening of April 15 in the Chu Van An temple area. Although she is a woman, she does not mind the dark night and the hard work, and is still enthusiastic with her colleagues to complete the assigned tasks well. She shared: "Working all day, at night she participates in forest patrol duties, and sometimes when I come home I have to go out to fight sudden forest fires, so I almost have to rely on my husband to take care of and teach my two young children. My family is very sympathetic and sympathetic, so I have more motivation to join everyone in protecting the forest."

At 9:30 p.m., the patrol teams stopped to rest. They sat on the ground and told each other funny stories about their lives. All the fatigue and hardship seemed to disappear.

Mr. Le Kha Hung, an officer of the Forest Protection Department of Chi Linh City, also took the opportunity to call home to ask about his wife and children. Over the phone, his wife encouraged her husband to rest assured in carrying out his assigned tasks and to try to protect the forests with everyone. At home, she had taken care of all the family chores and taking care of the children. Hearing that, Mr. Hung felt very happy and as if he had been given more motivation. "Our tasks have never been as heavy, arduous, and stressful as they have been since after storm No. 3. We have focused all our time and determined to carry out the tasks assigned by our superiors. Thanks to the strong rear, I can work with peace of mind," Mr. Hung confided.

After a few minutes of rest and relaxation, everyone returned to work until around 10:30 p.m. when they said goodbye to each other and returned to their units to rest. Early the next morning, after waking up, they continued with their work of keeping the forests safe. "This is the peak period, it is called sleeping, but we always remind each other to pay attention to our phones and keep in touch with key areas. As soon as there is a report of any incident related to forest fires, we will immediately set off. We have coordinated and built a coordination regulation with the grassroots forces, military units, and police stationed in the area and prepared vehicles and equipment according to the 4-on-the-spot motto. Everyone is on the highest level of vigilance, determined to minimize the risk of forest fires and if unfortunately there is a fire, we will work together to put it out," said Mr. Nguyen Truong Giang.

GOING STRONG

Source: https://baohaiduong.vn/trang-dem-giu-binh-yen-cho-nhung-canh-rung-o-hai-duong-409507.html