site.btaInterior Minister Stoyanov: Forest Fire in Greece Is Nearly 1 Kilometer from Bulgaria

The forest fire in Greece is nearly one kilometer from the Bulgarian-Greek border, and the fire front is about 15 km, caretaker Interior Minister Kalin Stoyanov said. He inspected from a helicopter the border between Bulgaria and Greece on Monday.

Flames have been raging in the Slavyanka Mountain, in the border area, for the third day. Firefighters from Sandanski and Gotse Delchev and forestry officials are on the spot, they are deployed along the ridge of the mountain.

In the words of Minister Stoyanov, the situation “is not optimistic at all”. A fire has been raging there for several days and it is steadily heading towards Bulgaria’s border, he said. The bad thing is that it is a very rugged area. Greece is using helicopters, and is also including aircraft, but firefighters cannot access the burning grass because the terrain has mine fields and people are not allowed there, Stoyanov explained. 

A large part of the people and equipment will be regrouped and redeployed in the border area, Stoyanov said. The fire could enter Bulgarian territory tomorrow at the earliest. Forestry officials in Sandanski and Petrich have made wide clearings to prevent the fire, the Minister said. In his words, the bad thing is that the forest is mostly coniferous and the fire there develops very quickly and intensively. When strong winds are blowing high, it is difficult to control the fire, but all forces will be mobilized in the region, Stoyanov added.

The helicopters from the Czech Republic and Spain are currently in Bulgaria and will be available for the firefighting, as well as helicopters from the Ministry of Defence, the Minister said, stressing that the fire could only be extinguished by air.

Stoyanov said that the fires in Bulgaria have affected an area of about 10,000 ha. The fire in the Yambol region on the territory of Voden, Krainovo and Strandja, has been localized and controlled, he added.

Regarding the investigation of the damage from the fires, Stoyanov said that several persons were detained.