"Erttractors" fight blaze above Paligrad; fire kept from entering Bonche — eight wildfire fronts active
Director Stojanche Angelov said there are no fatalities or burned houses; 31 wildfires were reported since yesterday, with eight still active at 7:30 a.m.
Firefighting teams held a fast-moving wildfire from reaching the houses above the village of Bonche, while blazes continued to burn at eight locations around the country early this morning, officials said.
Local crews and volunteers pushed the flames back near Bonche
Stojanche Angelov, director of the Directorate for Protection and Rescue, said that in the last 24 hours the country's crisis authority recorded a total of 31 wildfires — 23 were extinguished and eight remained active as of 7:30 a.m. today.
Describing the situation near the village of Bonche in the Prilep municipality, Angelov said volunteer firefighters from Bitola and Kochani were deployed overnight along the fire front and managed to stop the fire from advancing into the settlement, which has dozens of houses scattered over several hills.
Angelov warned about the weather and conditions: "It's good that we have no dead or injured and no burned houses. The situation is alarming, the high temperatures continue today and in the coming days. There is no forecast for rain in the coming period," and appealed to residents to stay careful.
He also described the terrain challenges around Bonche: "Around the village there is very high vegetation. Although in recent days we tried to make firebreaks, but because of the difficult terrain that was impossible," Angelov said, noting that professional fire crews from Prilep and Kavadarci were called in and emergency medical teams were present because conditions were severe. Several volunteer firefighters from Bitola inhaled smoke while fighting the flames.
Angelov expressed gratitude to the crews: "Huge thanks to the firefighters because if it weren't for them the fire would certainly have entered the village and we would have had a terrible sight. A great tragedy was avoided," he said.
Other active fires this morning include one spreading through mixed forest between the villages of Morane, Vrtekica and Ramni Gaber with a branch toward Paligrad and above Vrazhale in the municipalities of Studenichani and Zelenikovo. Fires were also reported near Cvetovo toward the old road to Elovo (Studenichani), in Vidush near Dragov Dol and Lokvica (Makedonski Brod), a high beech stand at Darda near Taimishte (Kichevo), mixed forest between Lomnica and Gjurgjeviste (Vrapchishte), low vegetation near Cerovo (Mavrovo and Rostuse) and low vegetation and bracken in Zhelino.
Angelov said three "erttractors" from the Directorate intervened to fight the blaze above Paligrad, which at one point drew to within about a hundred metres of the last houses there. In total, he said, firefighters had successfully localized and extinguished 23 fires that affected forests, dumps, stubble and dry grass across several municipalities in the past day.
Photo: press material from the event
