Apo fire feared nearing sulfur deposits

VOLUNTEERS load sacks of crushed ice onto a military helicopter that is helping fight the raging fire on
Mt. Apo, the country’s tallest peak. ORLANDO DINOY/INQUIRER MINDANAO

DIGOS CITY—Authorities expressed fears the fire that is still raging on Mt. Apo could spread to more areas on the country’s tallest peak, which has been declared closed for an indefinite period to mountaineering and other activities.

Changing wind direction is threatening to fan the flames, and sulfur deposits in one part of the mountain could catch fire and worsen the blaze, according to Harry Comoro, spokesperson of a group of officials in charge of fighting the fire and which calls itself Incident Monitoring Team.

Comoro said sulfur deposits are fueling the fire, making it tougher for firefighters to dig fire lines.

Mt. Apo is a dormant volcano and its previous eruptions left large sulfur deposits.

“Obnoxious odor is hampering the advance (of firefighting teams),” said Comoro.

Digos City Mayor Joseph Peñas has ordered the creation of a separate task force to focus on efforts by the city government to stop the fire from spreading in the Digos part of Mt. Apo.

Einstein Gary Taghoy, Digos City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council executive officer, said an emergency meeting was called by the task force on Friday.

Edgardo Elera, Digos City tourism officer, said at least 100 more volunteers are waiting to be deployed to help put out the fire. Orlando Dinoy, Inquirer Mindanao