site.bta Fire Situation in Southwest Remains Complicated, 220 ha Woodland Ablaze Near Senokos Village

At this moment the fire situation in Blagoevgrad Region (Southwestern Bulgaria) remains complicated, Regional Governor Georgi Dinev told journalists here on Friday. He pointed out that the fire, which broke out on Thursday near the Senokos Village, has been contained at three places, with the most severe situation in the south-eastern vicinity of the fire, where it is moving from ground fire to crown fire.

The direction of the fire is towards the ridge of the mountain and the nearby settlements are not at risk at this point. One of the Swedish aircraft sent to fight fires in Bulgaria under the EU Civil Protection Mechanism is involved in extinguishing the fire, as well as a helicopter of the Bulgarian Air Force. Thirty firefighters with nine fire engines, more than 75 forest rangers, service persons from the Blagoevgrad Third Brigade Command and volunteers are taking part in extinguishing the fire.

According to initial data, the fire has spread to about 220 ha of woodland but continues to grow, said the head of the forest rangers in Simitli, Blagoy Kishev.

In connection with the fire earlier in the day, the Interior Ministry Regional Directorate said that law enforcement authorities were working with one person whose involvement in the incident was still being established. Referring to the burnt property, the Regional Governor said that after an inspection, it was found that an unoccupied house and three farm buildings were burnt down.

Regarding the fire in the southwestern Municipality of Strumyani, Dinev said that given the hot weather on Friday, combined with the wind, it is possible that the fire there will start burning again. With this fire, the terrain allows for heavy equipment to be brought in, there are two bulldozers on site which continue to make new clearings and widen existing ones. At the moment the main goal is to protect the settlements, said the Blagoevgrad Regional Governor. There are four fire brigade teams on the ground with about 35 forest rangers.

At the moment, of the three fires raging in the region, the one in Slavyanka Mountain on the Bulgarian-Greek border remains the least priority because it is the furthest away from settlements, Dinev said. There are about 30 forest rangers and two fire brigade teams there. "They continue to make clearings, but care is being taken with the terrain, as there is a large mine field around which a perimeter has been set up, so that we can in no way risk the lives and health of the people who are on the ground at the moment," the Blagoevgrad Regional Governor added.