Wildfires

Wildfires - Laos

Forest fires in northern Laos have burned up to half of forested land in some areas as wildfires spread in parched, hard-to-reach hilly areas due to a lack of modern firefighting equipment, authorities said. Fires fanned by drier-than-usual weather in Luang Prabang, Xayabury and Oudomxay provinces have been burning for weeks, causing respiratory problems and some of the region’s worst smog in years. Many of the fires began as controlled burns started by farmers using slash-and-burn agriculture techniques to clear land for the beginning of planting season in May.

Two resorts and a privately owned nature reserve in Luang Prabang in northern Laos suffered substantial damage from bushfires last week, illustrating the threat to life and property during the annual slash and burn season that decimates forests in the Mekong Region.