A fire erupts in Tannourine Cedar Reserve from Tuesday evening to Wednesday morning. (Courtesy of Michel Hallak)
BEIRUT — A fire broke out in the Tannourine Cedar Reserve overnight from Tuesday to Wednesday, and was brought under control, a Civil Defense spokesperson told L’Orient Today.
Several areas have been damaged in this reserve, which is home to the country's emblem, cedar trees.
Head of the municipality of Tannourine, Samy Youssef, told local media that the “Civil Defense, the army and the security forces helped to put out the fire.”
He noted that “sections have been damaged, and there is no trace of suspicious activity so far,” and assured that an investigation has been opened.
The aftermath of damaged and charred trees, Wednesday morning, after a fire erupted overnight in the Tannourine Cedar Reserve. (Courtesy of Michel Hallak)
On Tuesday, Lebanon's National Council for Scientific Research warned of an increased risk of fires, especially in the next three days, and urged residents to be vigilant and refrain from lighting fires near dry grass.
Many fires have broken out in Lebanon this summer. The Director of the Civil Defense Raymond Khattar had claimed that in Lebanon "95 percent of fires are caused by man, intentionally or otherwise." Illegal loggers have benefitted from the fire-damaged forests to cut down more trees, as was the case in Akkar when cars, trucks and tractors reportedly gathered to the site of a blaze in order to collect the burnt wood.