Manila, March 27 -- The Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) in Ilocos Norte on Thursday reported a significant decline in forest fire incidents in the province for the first quarter of this year.

In an interview, Fire Supt. Roxanne Annie Parado, Provincial Fire Marshal, said only three forest fires were recorded in the province during the first quarter of this year, a "dramatic decrease" from the 26 recorded during the same period last year.

She attributed the decrease to the collaborative effort of the inter-agency task force formed last year to address causes of forest fires.

"We are so thankful for the strong collaboration of the inter-agency task force as we have seen a dramatic decrease in forest fires province-wide," Parado said.

Th...