Forest fire in Southwest China extinguished

KUNMING -- A forest fire that raged for two days in Heqing county, Southwest China's Yunnan province, was put out on Sunday, according to local authorities.

More than 1,700 firefighters were dispatched to extinguish the fire which swept across an area of 64 hectares.

The provincial fire department said there were no more fires in the area, but firefighters continued to patrol the mountain while a helicopter sprinkled water on the ashes to prevent reignition.

The local forestry police have detained a villager whose smoking was thought to have triggered the fire.

China's national observatory said earlier this month that low precipitation and strong winds have put southwestern provinces of Sichuan and Yunnan at high risk of forest fires.