Photo/Illutration A fire continues to burn in a forest in Otsuki, Yamanashi Prefecture, at noon on Feb. 28. (Koichiro Yoshida)

OTSUKI, Yamanashi Prefecture—The Self-Defense Forces on Feb. 28 joined in the battle against a raging forest fire here that has spread amid strong winds.

Three SDF helicopters were dumping water on the flames, but the fire was still burning at noon.

The previous day, two helicopters of the Yamanashi and Gunma prefectural governments were fighting the blaze from the air.

The firefighting operation was suspended at 5 p.m. on Feb. 27. About 200 workers stayed vigilant at the site overnight and resumed the firefighting efforts in the morning.

According to Yamanashi prefectural police and the Otsuki city fire department, the fire broke out at 1:40 p.m. on Feb. 26 in the Ozawa district of Otsuki city.

A resident made an emergency call at 1:45 p.m., reporting that the fire was spreading over dry grass.

The wildfire has razed at least 80 hectares of forest.

With the exception of a vacant house destroyed in the blaze, the fire so far poses no threat to residential houses in the rural area, officials said.

Nonetheless, the Otsuki city government established an evacuation center on the evening of Feb. 26 and called for the voluntary evacuation of 189 residents from 102 households.

However, no one had taken refuge there as of 6 p.m. on Feb. 27.

(This article was written by Shin Toyohira and Yusui Munekata.)

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