A massive fire broke out near the government mental hospital in Boileauganj on Thursday morning, spreading rapidly across nearly 1000 square feet of land and triggering panic in the area, officials said.
According to fire department officials, the blaze was reported at around 10:43 am, following which firefighting teams rushed to the spot to prevent the flames from spreading further toward nearby residential areas and forest land. Boileauganj Fire Officer Ramesh Kumar Sharma said the intensity of the fire and the difficult terrain were posing major challenges to the rescue and firefighting operation.
Speaking to ANI, Sharma said, “We received information regarding the fire at around 10:43 am. The blaze had already spread over nearly 1000 square feet of land by the time our teams reached the spot. The fire is quite massive and difficult to control. We are clearing the route for the fire lines so that the flames do not spread further. Our teams are continuously trying to douse the fire. It is difficult to estimate how much more time will be required to completely control the situation.”
Local residents said the fire erupted near the government mental hospital and quickly spread toward a nearby dog shelter, creating panic among villagers and officials in the area. Narendra Kumar, a local resident, said several departments, along with local villagers, joined efforts to contain the blaze and prevent damage to nearby houses.
“There is a government mental hospital near Boileauganj, and the fire also spread close to the dog house nearby. When I returned from the village side, I saw massive flames in the area. Personnel from the Fire Department and Forest Department were already present at the spot, and local people also helped in controlling the fire. Trees had caught fire and there were houses located nearby, so people were worried,” Kumar said.
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Officials said efforts were underway to fully extinguish the flames and ensure that the fire did not spread deeper into nearby forest areas or residential settlements. No casualties or injuries had been reported till the filing of this report.
Meanwhile, in another major forest fire incident in Himachal Pradesh, authorities on Wednesday managed to bring under control a massive blaze that had been raging for more than 27 hours in the Kasauli Beat area of Solan district.
According to the State Forest Department, the forest fire broke out around 1 pm on May 26 and spread across nearly 10 hectares of forest land. Officials classified the incident as a ground fire, though the exact cause behind the blaze is still under investigation.
The firefighting operation was conducted under the state’s Incident Response System and involved coordinated efforts from multiple agencies, including the State Forest Department, local administration and the Indian Air Force (IAF).
Officials said nine personnel from the forest department were deployed on the ground to contain the flames in the difficult hilly terrain. Due to the intensity and spread of the fire, aerial support from the Indian Air Force was also sought to assist in the operation.
The IAF had been battling the forest fire threatening the Kasauli hills since Tuesday evening. According to officials, four Mi-17 V5 helicopters were deployed for the mission and carried out over 150 sorties across the affected areas. The helicopters dropped nearly 62,500 litres of water to contain the blaze, which had posed a serious threat to nearby military installations and residential settlements in Kasauli.
IAF officials said pilots collected water from Sukhna Lake using Bambi bucket systems, with each sortie carrying between 2,000 and 2,500 litres of water. Operations continued round-the-clock, including night sorties conducted with the help of Night Vision Goggles (NVG), to support firefighting efforts in low-visibility conditions.
Officials said the intervention by the Indian Air Force played a major role in controlling and extinguishing the fire. The operation also highlighted the close coordination between the local administration, forest authorities and defence forces under aid-to-civil-authority arrangements.
Authorities said efforts were still continuing to prevent any fresh flare-ups and to protect forests, wildlife, residential areas and public property from further damage. Officials added that the challenging mountainous terrain, steep slopes and strong unpredictable winds significantly complicated firefighting operations and made access difficult for teams deployed on the ground.
The state government has estimated preliminary financial losses caused by the Kasauli forest fire at around Rs 67 lakh. However, officials clarified that the figures remain tentative and may change after further assessment and natural regeneration of forest cover during the post-monsoon period.
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