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Tech-equipped Indigenous firefighters protect Thai forests

Hmong villagers in northern Thailand use leaf blowers, machetes and live phone feeds to detect and suppress dry-season fires on forested slopes.

Published Mar 27, 2026, 12:48 AM EDT | WFMZZ

In the dry-season heat of northern Thailand, Hmong villagers zip through forested slopes, blasting tinder with leaf blowers and cutting through brush with machetes to suppress fires. Others scan for smoke on live feeds from their phones as they work to protect local forests.