site.btaUPDATED PM, Two Ministers Check Situation in Fire-Hit Village

Prime Minister Dimitar Glavchev and Interior Minister Kalin Stoyanov Sunday travelled to the village of Voden, Yambol Region, where a fire has been fought for six days now, the government information service said. The Interior Minister said that the situation was calm and all villages were safe.

Mobile coverage ensured

Glavchev checked on the spot the implementation of the mobile operators' commitment to provide a cell to ensure communication in the village.

In less than 24 hours, the process of installing a permanent mobile cell in the area of ​​the village of Voden was completed and it has been in operation since Saturday night, the government press service said. The cell was installed after an emergency meeting between Transport and Communications Minister Georgi Gvozdeikov with the mobile operators to solve the problem with the lack of mobile coverage.

Gvozdeikov, who was also in Voden on Sunday, said the additional infrastructure was installed on a site owned by the Border Police, which was not accessible because it is secret. The equipment of all three operators was installed and the signal will shortly be amplified fourfold.

The Prime Minister assumed that if there had been coverage in the area, disaster management would have taken a different course.

Temporary homes

Fifteen containers for temporary accommodation will arrive in the villages of Voden and Krainovo, said Glavchev. The first container is already in Voden and has water and power.

The Interior Minister noted that the containers could be delivered only after the fire was contained. The containers belong to the Fire Service and are arriving from all over the country, Stoyanov said. Commenting on President Rumen Radev's suggestion on Saturday that people could be accommodated in containers from the refugee centres, the Interior Minister explained that they are permanently fixed there. People who lost their homes will get what they need, Stoyanov said. 

A friend in need

Interior Minister Kalin Stoyanov and Prime Minister Dimitar Glavchev Sunday thanked Turkish firefighters who joined the effort to put down the blaze in the village of Voden, Yambol Region (Southeastern Bulgaria), the Interior Ministry said. The Turkish crew fought the fire for four days alongside Bulgarian firefighters, servicemen, forest rangers, volunteers, gendarmerie and border police officers.    

The Turkish firefighters arrived just a few hours after Bulgaria asked for support. Stoyanov told them: "These difficult moments showed once again that we are good neighbours and friends. We are grateful for your help and empathy."

Glavchev said: "The Turkish firefighters turned up literally hours after we asked them for help, they are still here and working around the clock."

Two firefighting aircraft from Spain are expected to join in on Sunday.

A total of 58 military personnel with specialized equipment and four helicopters were involved in extinguishing the fire near Voden, the Defence Ministry said.