site.btaUPDATED Saturday's Fire Situation

The residents of two villages near Svilengrad (Southeastern Bulgaria, on the border with Turkiye): Varnik and Matochina, will have to be evacuated because of a fire that broke out in the area, the Haskovo Regional Administration said in a press release on Saturday.

A total of three wildfires are raging in Haskovo Region on Saturday afternoon. One affects a large land tract in the area of the villages of Prisadets and Filipovo near Topolovgrad. The rugged terrain there impedes the fire-fighting effort. Another fire broke out near the village of Radovets, also near Topolovgrad.

Later in the day, the Interior Ministry said in a press release that due to a strong wind the fire near Filipovo spread to the areas of the villages of Varnik, Prisadets and Matochina several hours later. Dry grass and shrubs have caught fire. Sixteen firefighter crews from the Haskovo Fire Service have been joined by five crews from neighbouring regions, along with forest rangers and volunteers.

A Bulgarian Air Force Mi-17 helicopter from the Krumovo Air Base took off at 10:10 a.m. on Saturday to assist in fighting a fire at the village of Dobrostan near Asenovgrad (South Central Bulgaria), the Defence Ministry said in a press release. The assistance was requested by the General Directorate for Fire Safety and Civil Protection. On the ground, 12 firefighters with three fire engines, one all-terrain vehicle and a tank truck carrying 8 tonnes of water were deployed to control the disaster.

Later on Saturday, the fire in Asenovgrad Municipality was contained and largely brought under control with the help of two military helicopters, the Bulgarian Air Force reported on its website. "In the course of some 11 hours, the helicopter crews, in exceedingly dangerous conditions of high air temperatures, dense smoke, a strong tail wind, violent turbulence and rugged terrain, delivered approximately 105 tonnes of water for the aerial firefighting," the press release said. 

Over the last 24 hours, fire services countrywide received 143 emergency alerts, the General Directorate said on its website. They put out a total of 96 fires, of which five in residential buildings, one in an industrial building, two in transport vehicles, 52 in dry grass, undergrowth and shrubs, three in stubbles and 24 in garbage. Thirteen of the fires caused direct damage to property.