Burning fire in a virgin forest in Nyingchi Prefecture of Tibet has been extinguished by more than 6,000 fire-fighters after an artificial rainfall operation was performed, said local sources on Saturday.

 

By Saturday morning, the spread of the fire had been curbed. By 5:50 PM., burning fire was put out after having been raging for two days.

 

Thick smoke was spotted at about 5:10 PM on Thursday in a forest four kilometers from the Bayi township, in the Nyingchi Prefecture, southeast Tibet. Strong winds had fanned the fire and by 6:00 AM on Friday, the fire had moved more than five square kilometers,

 

Local meteorological departments successfully staged an artificial rainfall when rain clouds which had been forecasted earlier appeared in the sky on Friday.

 

Damage caused by the forest fire can not be calculated at the time but no casualties have been reported, said Zhao He, general director of the fire-fighting headquarter.

 

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

 

(Xinhua News Agency April 22, 2007)