February 15, 2002	Friday	Zilhaj 2, 1422

KANDAHAR, Feb 14: A fire erupted at a US base near Kandahar on Thursday night, but the US military played down fears of an enemy attack, saying the blaze had been started by a stray flare.

A witness reported gunfire and explosions at the Kandahar airport base and said a blaze had started near three Chinook CH-47 transport helicopters.

A cameraman said firing appeared to be concentrated along the base’s western perimeter and all lights except those illuminating a high-security jail for war captives were doused.

“There is gunfire and I have heard a couple of explosions that could be grenades or mortars,” he said.

“There is a huge fire on or very near to the runway about 100 metres from the terminal where I am. I heard a couple more explosions, some flares went up and then there was this fire.”

But a spokesman for U.S. central command at MacDill air force base in Tampa, Florida, said the fire had been started when a flare hit some scrub brush and that there had been no enemy fire, no injuries and no reports of any helicopters or other equipment burning.

Spokesman Major Ralph Mills said soldiers at the base had been firing flares to give better illumination of the area outside the perimeter after the base came under small arms fire on Wednesday night.

“There was no enemy seen in the area. There were no incoming rounds inside the perimeter. This was merely a precautionary measure...” he said.—Reuters