A major forest fire that was whipped up by winds in the southeastern part of the Tibet Autonomous Region was extinguished on Sunday, said an official with the Nyingchi Prefecture.

Zhoigar, commissioner of the Nyingchi Prefecture administrative office, said that more than 23,000 people fought the fire, which burned for a week.

They got help from snow on Saturday night, said the official, who added that some staff would remain in the forest to ensure that the fire didn't flare up again.

The estimated loss was about 530,000 yuan (about US$71,000)

The forest caught fire on Monday, with 208 hectares being affected and 68 hectares destroyed, but the visible flames were put out temporarily on Wednesday.

Meteorological workers carried out cloud-seeding operations, including firing 20 rockets, and said that they induced the fall of moderate snow.

Nyingchi, about 400 kilometers from the regional capital of Lhasa, is covered by dense forests that cover more than 46 percent of the area.

(Xinhua News Agency March 10, 2008)