Firefighters and firefighting planes from the Armed Forces managed to control a huge fire on Saturday, which spread across over 60 acres of palm trees at the al-Rasheda village, New Valley governorate.
Governor of the New Valley Mohamed al-Zamalout said that the process of cooling and isolating agricultural areas and housing units is currently underway. He pointed out that the firefighters have been working for more than 16 hours continuously to control the fire.
The New Valley Governorate witnessed the huge fire on Friday in al-Rasheda, which began with 60 acres of palm trees and houses, and eventually spread towards the neighboring village of Awaina.
The governorate used 30 fire engines from Assiut and Sohag, and 50 ambulances were moved to transport the wounded. Armed forces also flew four helicopters to take part in fighting the fire.
Around 37 people were injured during the fire.
Some parliament members arrived at the scene of the fire to figure out the cause and help those in need. The governor of the New Valley meanwhile announced a state of emergency and the formation of an operating room.
MP Daoud Suleiman, a member of the House of Representatives for al-Kharga city, was injured during his inspection of the fire and immediately taken by ambulance to receive treatment.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm.
