Fire guts Bedugul forests

DENPASAR: Forests near the Bedugul tourist garden, 40 kilometers north of here, were razed by fire on Sunday.

The Antara national news agency said that as of yesterday morning fire fighters had not been able to completely put out the blazes, due primarily to the scarcity of water and rivers near the fire site.

Roughly 150 hectares of forests were burned down by the blaze, a local forestry office official said.

He added, however, that the Bedugul tourist garden was not affected by the fire. The cause of the fire is still under investigation with officials not ruling out the possibility of arson.(bas)