site.btaThree Major Fires Active in Blagoevgrad Region

Three major fires are active in Blagoevgrad Region, Southwestern State Enterprise Director Valentin Chambov told journalists here on Thursday.

A fire that broke out at the Senokos Village near Simitli spread to the woodlands and is affecting pinewoods, Chambov pointed out. A large number of firefighters with three fire engines, three teams of forest rangers and volunteers are on site, but given that this is a crown fire they cannot be used effectively. Four houses in the village have burned down and one has been rescued by forest rangers. The village residents have been evacuated and nobody was hurt, said Blagoevgrad Regional Governor Georgi Dinev.

For the time being, the only way to fight this fire is from the air. One helicopter has been dousing the fire in Simitli Municipality, and two Swedish aircraft, provided under the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, are fighting the flames on site, it emerged at the meeting. The people and equipment are to be distributed among the three active fires.

The operation of the fire-fighting aircraft will be coordinated shortly. Helicopters and aircraft can operate together in an emergency situation, which is precisely the case now, the Regional Governor said further.

The fire in the Maleshevo Mountain has rekindled, and the Karpelevo Village in Strumyani Municipality is again at risk, Dinev also said. The firefighting effort at Bulgaria's border with Greece in the Slavyanka Mountain continues.