All of Italy has been engulfed in fires for weeks. Some of the central and southern regions have lost tens of thousands of hectares of forest. In Sardinia botanists are alarmed by the destruction of local biodiversity as well as the number of olive groves that have been destroyed. In Sicily the fires reached the city of Catania and about 150 people had to be evacuated from the sea. The city airport was also closed for several hours.
The reason why Italy is facing numerous fires has its source in a combination of political responsibilities, bureaucracy for the protection of forests and criminal and mafia actions. According to Coldiretti, the largest farmers’ association in Italy, at least 60% of fires in Italy are intentional.
Lack of water reserves
High temperatures have also caused shortages in water reserves. According to local authorities the reservoirs in Sicily have about 78 million cubic meters less water than last year, the lowest level this decade. For this reason in January 2021, the Sicilian government allocated 20 million euros to farmers to improve the capacity of water reservoirs.
47 Dutch soldiers are coming to Albania this week
The EU Civil Protection Mechanism is a network of civil protection authorities in member countries that can send helicopters or firefighting aircraft to each other. The European Commission coordinates the voluntary offers of the participating countries in this network.
A message on the social media of the Dutch embassy in Tirana states that “the helicopters are of the Chinook type and are equipped with special containers that can release 10 thousand liters of water to extinguish fires. “Along with the helicopters, 47 Dutch servicemen will come to start the operations this week.”
Albania’s involvement in the fires from north to south brought to light the lack of means to extinguish them as soon as possible. Relevant authorities launched a tender audit on Wednesday to purchase tools and equipment for all institutions related to social emergencies.
Greek health authorities say up to 465 micrograms of fine carbon dust per cubic meter have been recorded in Athens. For comparison, the limit set by the EU is 50 micrograms per cubic meter of air.
Fires engulf a power plant in Turkey
On the Aegean coast in Turkey, the Kermekoy power plant in the city of Milas was engulfed in fire. Prior to the evacuation, workers managed to empty the hydrogen-filled refrigeration tanks. The power plant uses coal and oil to generate electricity.
Last week Ankara was forced to admit that the number of planes and helicopters to fight the flames effectively is insufficient. However, President Erdogan rejected an offer from Greece and Israel to send planes and helicopters. Meanwhile, the EU sent three planes to help put out the fires in Turkey.
Fires that have been going on for more than a week have claimed eight lives in Turkey and destroyed large forest areas along the shores of the Aegean Sea and the Mediterranean Sea. Thousands of citizens have been forced to flee their homes./DW
