By Supun Dias

About 30 acres of forest land in Digampathana in Sigiriya were completely destroyed by a fire that ravaged the area, police media spokesman Prishantha Jayakody said.

He said the fire was finally doused by forest officers who were assisted by the Dambulla Urban Council fire Brigade, the Sigiriya police and villagers.

SP Jayakody said investigations were being conducted to find out how Monday evening’s fire, which destroyed more than 500 valuable plants, had originated.

He said no injuries or casualties to anyone in the area had been reported. The Forest Conservation Department said the fire had spread rapidly because of the dry weather conditions prevailing in the area and the difficulty in accessing the area devastated by fire contributed to the delay in extinguishing it. (Daily Mirror online)