A bush fire has swept through the farming community of Diare-Safam in the Savelugu-Nanton District, completely destroying a 10-acre mango plantation estimated at GH¢40,000.
About 1,000 trees were destroyed by the fire, the cause of which is yet to be established.
The owner of the farm, Mr Mohammed Bukari, an agriculturist, explained that he had created a fire belt to protect the farm against such incidents and so he was at a loss as to how the fire reached the farm because the farm was far away from the community.
Mr Bukari, who is the Zonal Agricultural Manager for the Northern Interaction Zone of the Millennium Development Authority (MiDA) in Tamale, said he was liaising with the Ghana Fire Service to ascertain the cause of the fire.
Bush fires are common in the northern part of the country during periods of severe Harmattan, as are being experienced currently in the Northern Region.
He said he embarked on the plantation in 2005 and had spent more than GH¢40,000 on it, adding that it would have been ready for harvest in three years.
Asked whether the trees could regenerate, Mr Bukari said it was not possible, since, according to him, the trees “were burnt in the process, probably because of the mulch we had created around them”.
The gutting of farms, particularly rice fields, is a common phenomenon in the north when the Harmattan is severe at this time of the year.