Borislav Gutsanov presented a new project that will support voluntary groups, municipalities and the General Directorate “Fire Safety and Population Protection“ to purchase equipment and equipment for action in disaster situations, reports Nova TV.
Fire extinguishers and fire protection clothing, boats and special equipment for floods are just some of the aids that will be provided through the project, financed under the Human Resources Development Program of the Ministry of Labor and Social Policy.
The Minister noted that he was impressed that a large part of the volunteers do not have the necessary equipment, but they help nevertheless. He called them heroes. "The state must do everything possible to equip them to save their lives. Therefore, we will provide 14 million leva for the "Fire Safety and Population Protection" Directorate for equipping volunteers and purchasing drones according to needs", Gutsanov said. He added that the equipment will be purchased by the end of the year.
The Director of "Fire Safety and Population Protection" Chief Commissioner Alexander Dzhartov thanked the Ministry of Social Affairs. "With the allocated funds, we will be able to have better and new equipment to cope better and reduce the damage caused by the fires. We will allocate the funds as expediently as possible to scout the fires“, Dzhartov pointed out.
"Over 3,500 volunteers from 250 formations are registered with us. We have six drones for fires on large areas and in hard-to-reach areas. We have signed contracts for 37 heavy-duty fire trucks (8,000 liters of water), 127 medium-duty (3-4,000 liters of water) and 120 light-duty (pick-ups with high-pressure extinguishing systems). In its history, the fire department has never been better equipped with both equipment and personal resources", Dzhartov announced. He specified that there had been 70 fires over the past 24 hours.
The Chairman of the National Association of Volunteers, Dr. Yasen Tsvetkov, assured that the work with the fire department will continue in excellent coordination. “We are a product and part of the state. "The last year or two have marked the beginning of an extremely difficult period and we must be prepared," he believes.