A firefighter trying to put out the wildfires at the rural of Marmaris district of Mugla, Turkey
TIRANA (Albania), Aug 7 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Emergency crews throughout the Balkans continued to battle wildfires on Friday, but forecasts of rain and an incoming cold front promised some relief for the region.
In Northern Macedonia, eight fires burning prompted the government to declare a state of crisis on Thursday.
The first of a series of Austrian aid convoys reached the region on Friday. In total, Vienna is sending 136 helpers, 16 fire-fighting vehicles, 24 trucks and an ambulance to northern Macedonia, according to vesti.mk portal.
Serbia, Bulgaria and Slovenia also sent assistance.
Large fires also burned across the border in Albania, where flames broke out in the north near Kukes on Friday, Defence Minister Niko Peleshi said.
Albanian fire crews have managed to bring all of the other forest fires under control.
Farmhouses and vegetation were destroyed in fires burning during the past week in the south and along the coastal region of Vlora.
Farms also caught fire in Kosovo, where there were nearly 500 forest fires during the past week. The NATO KFOR forces stationed in Kosovo helped to extinguish the flames, but the authorities are worried that more fires could break out.
After some of the affected countries turned to the EU for help in managing the fires, the EU’s Civil Protection Mechanism sent two helicopters to Albania and a firefighting team with 45 firefighters to North Macedonia and four air tractors and a ground forest fighting team of 40 firefighters to Greece.
Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarčič said: “We are working around the clock to send help as fires rage across Europe. I thank Cyprus, Czechia, France, Slovenia and the Netherlands for swiftly deploying firefighting airplanes, helicopters and a team of firefighters to support countries heavily affected by forest fires.
“At this time, as several Mediterranean countries are facing fires, the EU Civil Protection is making sure that our firefighting tools in place are used at maximum capacity. This is an excellent example of EU solidarity in times of need,” he added. — NNN-AGENCIES
