A sudden fire which occurred within the Thabbowa Wildlife Sanctuary has burned down trees, shrubs and grasslands of an extent over 300 acres, Puttalam District Assistant Director of Wildlife, Eranda Gamage said.
The ranger of the Karuwalagaswewa Wildlife Range Office, D Ramasinghe said the fire occurred during the afternoon hours on Friday.
It had taken 10 hours to completely control the fire despite officers of the Department of Wildlife Conservation, Thabbowa army camp, area Police as well as Puttalam Municipal Council fire fighters using their combined efforts.
Wildlife officers suspect the fire could have been set by a person or a group of people. They believe that the fire might have been set with the intention of hunting animals.
The officers also added that the fire which had started from the 13th mile post within the sanctuary had spread over 300 acres.
They believed the fire would have killed many animals in the area.
