Current The situation with the large-scale fires in Bulgaria remains tense, but under control. The critical point over the past 24 hours has moved to the Haskovo region, where a fire element has burned thousands of acres of land. At the same time, agricultural teams, firefighters and volunteers continue to be on duty on the remaining active fronts in the country to prevent new flare-ups under the influence of the strong wind.
The critical outbreak in Haskovo: Flames near the “Koren“ polygon
The most serious situation remains in the triangle between the Haskovo villages Dinevo, Lyubenovo, Koren and Krivo Pole. The fire, which according to initial data started from the dump in the village of Dinevo, quickly grew under the effect of strong gusts of wind and covered an area of nearly 5000 acres.
The disaster seriously affected the territory of Military Training Range “Koren“. According to the official report of the Ministry of Defense, published by the Military Television Channel (armymedia.bg), 17 servicemen with 4 units of specialized equipment from the Land Forces were immediately sent to the scene. Due to the difficult terrain, a helicopter was also involved in the extinguishing operation AS 532 AL Cougar from Krumovo airbase, which carried out dozens of water-drops over critical areas.
Haskovo Regional Governor Todor Ivanov assured the Bulgarian Telegraph Agency (bta.bg) and Nova Television (nova.bg) that there is no immediate danger to the population in nearby villages, although the changing wind has directed some of the smoke towards the village of Krivo Pole. The authorities are ready to activate the BG-ALERT system and evacuate if the situation worsens dramatically.
In parallel, two more smaller outbreaks have arisen in the region:
- Simeonovgrad: Fire between the villages of Troyan and Pyasychevo, which was quickly brought under control with the help of teams from Kardzhali and Stara Zagora.
- Dimitrovgrad: Flames near the railway bridge over the Maritsa River in the direction of the “Mariyno“ district, where firefighters stopped the fire meters from a poplar forest.
Controlled elements: Blagoevgrad, Plovdiv and the Kotla Balkan
While Eastern and Southern Bulgaria are fighting the flames, the situation is improving in other parts of the country:
- Blagoevgrad region (Garmen): According to information from the news agency „Focus“ (focus-news.net) and the portal “Facts“ (fakti.bg), the fire safety services and employees of the Southwestern State Enterprise have managed to extinguish the severe forest fire near Garmen. Monitoring teams remain on site.
- Plovdiv: The quick intervention of firefighters prevented more serious damage in the fire on the Youth Hill in the city. The fire was contained within hours.
- Sliven (Medven and Gradec): The fire, which burned about 2000 acres of dry grass and pastures, has already been extinguished. According to data from the Regional Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs - Sliven, cited by Mediapool (mediapool.bg), they are already two people detained in connection with causing the fire disaster.
Statistics and weather forecast: Is a breath of air coming?
The General Directorate of “Fire Safety and Population Protection“ (mvr.bg/gdpbzn) reports an extremely dynamic 24 hours - over 140 fires were extinguished across the country, with two people injured in incidents (mainly in the domestic sector). The director of the General Directorate of Fire Protection and Forestry noted on BNT (bntnews.bg) that the total number of fires this summer is about 25-30% lower than the previous year, but extreme weather conditions require round-the-clock vigilance.
What's next?
The National Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology (meteo.bg) predicts a gradual decrease in temperatures and the arrival of a cold front. It is expected that in the afternoon hours of August 24, it will rain and thunder over Western and Central Bulgaria, which will reduce the risk of new fires. However, for Southeastern Bulgaria and the Haskovo region, the fire danger index remains high during the first half of the day.
The fire department reminds that over 90% of forest fires in our country are a result of human negligence. Citizens are urged not to light open fires and to be extremely careful when working with agricultural machinery.