- The PAF used 400 kilos of crushed ice to douse the Mt. Apo fire
- The effectiveness of the ice in putting out the fire is yet to be determined
- If effective, the Office of Civil Defense Region 11 will buy more crushed ice
The Philippine Air Force (PAF) used around 400 kilos of crushed ice to see if it could help put out the Mt. Apo fire that have been raging since March 26.
Edith Regalado wrote in her article for Philstar published on April 4, 2016 that Lt. Col. Jose Ritchie Pabilonia, commander of the Technical Operations Group, 3rd Air Division of the Philippine Air Force, revealed that it was the first experimental operation conducted since the blaze started.
He said he cannot determine offhand the effectiveness of the crushed ice in putting out the fire.
“We have yet to confirm the effects of the crushed ice with the volunteers on the ground,” he said during the Regional Disaster Risk Reduction Management Program in Davao City.
Pabilonia said they used a Super Huey helicopter to drop sacks of crushed ice into the burning portion of the mountain.
If effective, the PAF will deploy a UH1H helicopter to replace the Super Huey chopper to drop more ice to the affected areas.
Pabilonia explained the Super Huey has only 11 hours and 59 minutes remaining flying hours which he estimated to run about three to four days.
“It will have to end its operation to undergo maintenance for about 8 days to 10 days; after which, it will take few days for test flights,” he said.
Office of Civil Defense (OCD) Region 11 Director Liza Mazo shared that the crushed ice were donated by Solano and Davao ice plants.
“We are supposed to buy it, but upon knowing that it was for Mt. Apo, they donated it. If found effective to douse the grassfire in Mt. Apo, OCD will buy more crushed ice,” Mazo said.
Meanwhile, Pinoy Mountaineer has on its updates that: “As per the Protected Area Management Board and concerned LGUs, Mt. Apo is closed indefinitely – and this closure is likely to be AT LEAST 3-5 years.”
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