Wild fire destroys sugarcane farms in Plateau

A wild fire recently destroyed dozens of hectares of maturing sugarcane farms in Kunji, a community in Kerang district of Mangu Local Government Area of Plateau State.  The exact size of the farms could not be ascertained at press time, but the leadership of the community which confirmed the disaster, put the worth of produce […]

A wild fire recently destroyed dozens of hectares of maturing sugarcane farms in Kunji, a community in Kerang district of Mangu Local Government Area of Plateau State.
 The exact size of the farms could not be ascertained at press time, but the leadership of the community which confirmed the disaster, put the worth of produce lost at about N8 million.
 “The fire affected the main source of livelihood of our people. It destroyed farms worth over N8 million,” Da Gideon Darring, the Mai Unguwa (village head) of the community told Daily Trust, on phone.
“On one farm alone, over 300 big ridges of maturing sugarcane were affected; nothing was saved from the fire,” he added.
He said the source of the fire was still unknown, but added that investigation was on by communal efforts to track those responsible.
 The district head of Kerang, Da Philemon, told Daily Trust that no fewer than 10 families owned the affected farms, and are now left with no alternative livelihood.
 Mangu Local Government Chairman, Titis Bise, who visited the area to sympathise with the affected farmers, and assess the extent of the damage, said it was more unfortunate as the plantations were only a few weeks to harvesting.
 He appealed to the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) to come to the aid of the farmers.
 He also called on investors to take advantage of the large scale production of sugarcane in the area to establish an industry which will not only engage youths in the area but also boost the economic profile of the local government area.
He described the incident as an act of sabotage which will cause untold hardship on those affected as the farms are their main source of livelihood.