Pyongyang, January 27 (KCNA) -- Kim Sung Hyok, head of an office of the Forest Guidance Bureau under the Ministry of Land and Environment Protection in the DPRK, gave an answer to the question raised by KCNA as regards the recent weather feature and the preventive measure against any possible forest fire.

He said:

This winter, the atmospheric humidity is getting low and the weather is getting dry with decrease in the total precipitation.

It is expected that the risk of forest fire will increase in the future, due to such abnormal weather.

In order to prevent any possible forest fire, officials in provinces, cities and counties should intensify education among the inhabitants and woodcutters in their regions and enhance the forest rangers' sense of responsibility to prevent any practice of violating the established rules and orders for entry into mountains.

It is needed to set up fixed observation posts on the spots favorable for monitoring the overall forests including special protection forests, reinforce the mobile observation posts and ensure in an effective way the establishment of a regular forest fire monitoring system and the normal operation of surveillance cameras.

In particular, it is more important to further enhance the sense of responsibility and role of anti-forest fire combined guidance teams, allocate competent officials to the anti-forest fire sections and keep the forest fire information system in good order.

Industrial establishments should increase the number of forest fire rangers and forest rangers in forests in their charge to take a preliminary step against any possible forest fire, and conduct the repair and maintenance of fire-belts, stone barriers and catch basins in a substantial way before the period of danger of forest fire.

It is necessary to reinforce the fire brigades, fully arrange the vehicles and fire extinguishing equipment and make thorough preparations for putting out fire at once in case of the outbreak of forest fire.

He stressed the need to have regular access to the forest-fire monitoring information service system and intensively display watchwords related to the anti-forest fire work and the notice phone numbers on roadsides along the forest or roads to and from forests. -0-