Dry grass near runway catches fire

A minor fire broke out at the grassy area near a runway at the airport here, triggered by crackers used to scare away birds, airport officials said.
Officials said crackers are routinely used ahead of the arrival and departure of flights to scare away birds which fly near the runway.
When crackers were burst this morning, the dry grass in the area caught fire, they said.
Two fire tenders were pressed into service and they doused the flame in a half hour long operation, they said.
The landing of a cargo flight was delayed by about 30 minutes due to the incident.