Following the aggravation of the situation with the fires that have engulfed Albania, as well as many countries in the Mediterranean, the EU is supporting the country by activating the Civil Protection Mechanism.
The situation of fires that have engulfed Albania in recent days continues to be worrying. The number of active fires increased by about 50 percent on Wednesday (04.08) when they reached 13 out of 9 the day before.
In the late hours of the evening, Shengjin Mountain (Lezha Region) was covered by fire and flames. The State Police announced that they have started investigations for this new active fire because there are suspicions that the fire did not occur due to the high temperatures, but it is intentional and there are perpetrators. The number of those arrested as arsonists doubled on Wednesday, reaching 6 people.
An official report on the situation of fires by the Ministry of Defense states that although active fires have increased, in most of them they do not pose a risk to include residential areas and dwellings. But in Fushë Arrëz, (Puka Region) there is a risk that the fire will cover the inhabited areas. To prevent the spread of fire, over 500 members of the Armed Forces have been activated there.
The damage so far from burning hundreds of hectares of forests, pastures and thousands of olive roots is significant. The forecast predicts for today, (05.08) further increase of active fires from the heat which is forecast to go to 41- 43 degrees Celsius. The wind, which is forecast to blow at a speed of 50-55 km per hour, threatens the spread of fires. The EU Emergency Response Coordination Center (ERCC) has calculated that within the first five days of August the number of fires in Albania has reached 120.
Janez Lenarcic: EU solidarity, in times of need
Following talks earlier this week between the Albanian authorities and those of the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, this mechanism was activated in response to the difficult situation in Albania and the entire region due to fires.
In a statement, published on Wednesday, the EU Civil Protection Mechanism states that “in support of Albania, two countries, the Netherlands and the Czech Republic will bring to Albania three helicopters to contribute to extinguishing the fires, which will support firefighting operations. While from France to the areas affected by the fires in Italy, the mechanism in question will send two firefighting aircraft. From Cyprus, two such planes will be sent to Greece to support it in the alarming fire situation, while Slovenia will send a team of 45 firefighters to northern Macedonia.
Crisis Management Commissioner Janez Lenarcic called the support in the above-mentioned statement “an excellent example of EU solidarity in times of need”.
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./DW
