site.btaRising Forest Fire Risk Reported in North-Central Bulgaria

The North-Central State Enterprise (NCSE)-Gabrovo reported on Friday that a period of rising risk of forest fires has started. NCSE manages state-owned forest territories in the regions of Gabrovo, Veliko Tarnovo, Ruse, Silistra, and Razgrad.

Between April and October last year, NCSE recorded 32 forest fires affecting 734 hectares of forest, with human activities causing three-quarters of these incidents. NCSE urges the public to avoid starting fires outdoors and to report any fire sightings in forest or agricultural areas by calling 112 for prompt containment and extinguishing.

Each year NCSE takes steps to mitigate fire risks. In 2023, it put an emphasis on prevention. Forest fire-fighting infrastructure has been significantly improved over a million linear metres, including maintenance, construction, and installation of various barriers.

NCSE has established 22 specialized fire-fighting teams trained biannually and equipped with necessary gear. However, despite these measures, forest fires in 2023 caused significant losses in the hundreds of thousands range to the state due to damages and extinguishing costs.

Last year, fire extinguishing operations by the NCSE involved 154 employees, 56 volunteers, and 64 vehicles from its territorial divisions.

NCSE reports an above-average number of forest fires in 2023, but the affected areas were smaller than usual. Typically, 21 fires occur annually, impacting around 990 hectares of forest land.