‘We’re now in summer and every piece of shrapnel that falls in the forests starts a fire,’ says the JNF Upper Galilee Region director. According to JNF data, at least twice the area in the north has burned in the past few days than in the entire Second Lebanon War

Zafrir Rinat Adi Hashmonai. Jun 5, 2024

DDrone footage showing some of the fire damage at Birya forest, northern Israel.Credit: JNF

Tuesday’s fire in the Biriya Forest near the northern Israeli city of Safed burned an area of approximately 200 acres, which had previously burned in the Second Lebanon War in 2006. 

The scale of the damage was revealed on Wednesday after the Jewish National Fund used a drone to document the area of the 5,000-acre forest that had gone up in flames.

The fire broke out after shrapnel from a missile interception fell in the forest. Twelve firefighting crews and four helicopters were called to extinguish the flames, but they only managed to bring the fire under control in the evening, after many hours.

Fires have broken out across wide areas of the Upper Galilee since the start of the week, due to the military clash between the Israeli army and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, in conjunction with the dry weather conditions. Over 5,500 acres of vegetation, natural forest, and pastures have burned.

Besides the Biriya Forest, the Nahal Yehudiya Nature Reserve and Jordan Park have also been damaged by the fires. According to JNF data, at least twice the area in the north has burned in the past few days than in the entire Second Lebanon War.

Footpaths at Birya forest, drone footage, on Wednesday.Credit: JNF

Birya forest had sustained extensive damage by fire during the war in 2006. In the subsequent years, several restoration operations have been carried out.

Remains of the missile that fell Tuesday caused fires to erupt at several locations. Due to the forest’s topography, firefighting crews struggled to reach all of them. While firefighting efforts were completed Wednesday, several fire trucks are positioned nearby in case the fire reignites.

Drone footage showing some of the fire damage at Birya forest, northern Israel, on Wednesday.Credit: JNF

The JNF plans to clear the trees that were destroyed in the fire, but no other work is planned at the site in the near future.

“We will leave the land for a year or two in order to allow it to renew naturally as much as possible,” said JNF Upper Galilee Region director Eli Hafuta. “Afterward, we will also carry out other rehabilitation activity.” 

The JNF fears that more forest fires will break out if the war continues. “All our winter miracles are used up,” he added. “We’re now in summer and every piece of shrapnel that falls in the forests starts a fire.”

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2024-06-05/ty-article/.premium/vast-areas-of-northern-israels-forests-burned-in-the-2006-lebanon-war-burn-again/0000018f-e92f-dc46-a5bf-f9efcea40000