A fast-spreading blaze swept through Jaralhawa Gachhi village in ward 6 of Matihani Municipality in Mahottari, on Wednesday, destroying at least 110 homes.

Hari Prasad Mandal, the mayor of Matihani Municipality, said the fire that broke out from a haystack at around noon burnt 110 homes in Miyatol and Hattatol. The inferno was brought under control at around 7pm.

“Personnel of the Nepal Army, Nepal Police and Armed Police Force as well as local residents doused the fire with the help of four fire engines. Scores of families have become homeless," said Mandal.

Food grains, clothes and other belongings were destroyed in the incident. Many domesticated animals were also charred to death.

“We are yet to assess the full extent of the damage. Our current efforts are focussed on providing immediate relief to the displaced people," said Shivaram Gelal, chief district officer of Mahottari. According to him, many of the displaced are now taking shelter at a local school building.

Lakhan Devi Pasawan had gone to Sitamadhi of India for the treatment of abdominal pain. When she returned in the evening, her four thatch-roof homes had turned into ashes.

“We have nothing left. How can we survive now?" lamented Lakhan Devi. According to her, Rs200,000 in cash that her son sent from abroad and the money earned by her husband operating an auto-rickshaw was burnt in the incident.

Incidents of fire—both house fires and forest fires—have been on the rise in various districts of Madhesh Province over the past few weeks. The fires spread and cause huge destruction due to dry spells and strong winds.

On Tuesday, seven homes were burnt to a cinder at Karumiya settlement in ward 1 of Dewahi Gonahi Municipality in Rautahat district. According to the District Police Office, the houses belonging to Najarul Ansari, Sabir Hussein, Ansarul Ansari, Majid Ansarii, Id Mahammad, Sobarati Ansari and Alisher Ansari were destroyed in the incident.

The inferno was doused with the help of security personnel and local residents. Preliminary police investigation shows property worth around Rs1.7 million was destroyed in the incident. The fire was caused by an electrical short circuit, said police.

Similarly, there was yet another fire in Alau in ward 17 of Birgunj Metropolitan City in Parsa district on Tuesday morning. According to the District Police Office, seven thatched-roof homes were destroyed in the incident.

The fire victims could not salvage food grains, clothes and other belongings as the fire engulfed the clustered settlement in no time. Property worth approximately Rs5.4 million is estimated to have been destroyed in the incident, according to police.

Wildfires have also been wreaking havoc in several districts in the country over the past few weeks. Hectares of community and national forests were burnt while the fires are still raging in many forests.

Lumbini and Madhesh provinces are highly affected by wildfires. The prolonged dry spell, strong winds and dried-up foliage trigger the rapid spread of the wildfires.

According to the Ministry of Forest and Environment in Lumbini, on Tuesday, wildfires were reported in 235 places in nine districts of the province. On Sunday, fires raged in forest areas in more than 300 places in all 12 districts of Lumbini Province.

According to Dilaram Paudel, the information officer at the provincial forest ministry in Lumbini, a total of 12,619 hectares of forests have been affected by wildfires this year alone. He said around 2,932 hectares in Kapilvastu; 2,389 in Rukum East; 1,813 in Dang; 1,720 in Arghakhanchi; 1,051 in Gulmi; 853 in Bardiya; more than 500 hectares in Palpa; and 230 hectares in Rupandehi were destroyed in the wildfires this year.

“More forest lands in Lumbini Province have seen fires this year compared to last year. Most affected are the Chure area forests in the Tarai and community forests in the hilly regions,” said Paudel.

On Saturday, around 89 houses and animal sheds were destroyed after forest fires entered human settlements in Gulmi. Ishma, Madane, Malika, Gulmi Durbar Rurukshetra, and Chhatrakot Dhurkot rural municipalities and Musikot Municipality of the district were most affected.

Wildfires are common in Nepal during the dry season. They may occur naturally or through human activities and errors, but hotter and drier conditions often make them go beyond control.

Human actions—discarding cigarette butts without stubbing them out, burning dry vegetation to clear farmlands, and deliberate burning by grazers and poachers—are considered the main reasons for forest fires.

(With inputs from our local correspondents)