TEHRAN — Wildfire which erupted on Friday night in Miankaleh peninsula, northern province of Mazandaran, was contained on Saturday morning, the province’s chief of department of environment said.

The fire broke in a border area between provinces of Mazandaran and Golestan, however, due to the darkness it was hard to put out the fire immediately, IRNA news agency quoted Hosseinali Ebrahimi as saying. 

Ebrahimi explained that the fire must have been caused by human but “we” still don’t know if it was intentional of unintentional.

In [Iranian calendar month of] Khordad (May 22-June 21) the area caught fire three times and at least 12 hectares of the vegetation and forested areas was turned into aches. 

In [the calendar month o] Tir (June 22-July 22) some 2 hectares of the peninsula also burnt in fire. 

Last year (March 2017-March 2018) some 300 hectares of the wetland also burnt in fire. 

The peninsula is a narrow but long peninsula north of Iran situated in the extreme south-eastern part of the Caspian Sea. Miankaleh peninsula, a UNESCO biosphere reserve, is one of the richest ecological havens in West Asia and perhaps in the whole world. It is home to many unique Caspian bird and reptile species native to this region. It's also a very important internationally recognized refuge for migratory birds.

MQ/MG