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A forest fire broke out on Mount Posdo in Mankayan, Benguet, on February 4, burning portions of Barangays Bulalacao and Guinaoang before it was contained around midnight.
Barangay Secretary Omar Lopez Damoslog said the blaze started at about 11 a.m. in Bulalacao and later spread to Guinaoang. Fire personnel from the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) and the Community Environment and Natural Resources Office (CENRO) were deployed on February 5 to assess the damage.
Senior Fire Officer 2 Elmer Maton of BFP Mankayan said about 14 hectares of Little Posdo were affected, mostly private land converted to vegetable gardens. He added that the cause of the fire is still under investigation.
No casualties were reported. Maton noted that similar fires occurred on Mount Posdo in 2024 and 2025, both traced to man-made causes in Barangay Bulalacao. Damoslog said this year’s fire occurred earlier than usual and was larger than previous incidents.
Marlo Pablo, Indigenous Peoples Mandatory Representative of Bulalacao, said the fire began from grass burning in a garden that spread to the forest, affecting around 10 hectares. Responders focused on preventing the blaze from reaching the larger communal forest and watershed.
Two other forest fires were reported in Itogon, Benguet. A blaze in Barangay Ampucao on February 3 burned 1.5 hectares, while another in Barangay Loacan started on January 30 and affected eight hectares. Both fires were later extinguished.
Authorities said investigations are ongoing for the Itogon fires. Barangay officials, municipal authorities, and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) said they will study additional measures to prevent future incidents.