IAF drill to douse fire ends abruptly near Sulur pond

Coimbatore: A drill conducted at Sulur pond in the city by the Indian Air Force to douse fire in buildings and forests using a chopper was stopped abruptly mid-way on Tuesday.

According to sources, a 'Bambi Bucket' with a capacity of more than 10,000 litres was dangled using a rope from the chopper to fetch water from the pond as part of the drill. Unfortunately, the rope snapped when IAF personnel attempted to fill water in the bucket and it fell into the pond. Immediately, the IAF personnel stopped the drill. Meanwhile, many news channels flashed the incident and a gaggle of reporters descended at the spot.

The IAF personnel retrieved the bambi bucket from the pond and returned to their air base in Sulur. Police sources said it was a routine exercise and the IAF personnel used such water tanks to douse forest fires.

The IAF played a vital role in dousing the fire that engulfed the Parambikulam forest in March, 2017. At the time, IAF personnel from the Sulur air base used a chopper to douse the fire. The IAF personnel fetched water from the Hoonakkadavu reservoir using a 'Bambi Bucket' with a capacity of 10,000 litres. The water was sprayed on the raging fire twice using the chopper. The third time, the chopper had fuel to fly for about 90 minutes only and had to return to its base.