Police say evidence points to arson in Mariovo wildfire, criminal charges expected

Police in Prilep say they have material and video evidence suggesting the large wildfire that swept through the Mariovo village of Chanishta was deliberately set, and they are preparing criminal charges against those responsible.

The announcement came at an extraordinary municipal council session called by opposition members and held around midnight. "We have indications of possible perpetrators, material evidence and video recordings have been secured with the help of the border police and we expect to present concrete information and a criminal charge as soon as possible," said Goran Kolondzoski, commander of the Prilep Police Station.

Council members criticised the organisation of firefighting efforts, saying crews at the scene lacked sufficient water, food and rest areas and that there was no coordination for people who volunteered to help extinguish the blaze. Mayor Dejan Prodanovski told councilors that the municipality has technical and human resources available and emphasised that, despite the scale of the fire in Chanishta, there have been no human fatalities.

Largest active wildfire in the country

By 13:00 the national Centre for Crisis Management had recorded 12 wildfires across the country, of which eight remained active and four had been put out. The largest and most complex remains the Mariovo fire, which is spreading in four directions and affects territory in three municipalities: Prilep, Novaci and Mogila.

"In essence we are slowing it down; the terrain is specific, there is dense dry grass up to half a metre, easily flammable bushes. Our objective is the defence of the villages and so far we are doing that successfully," said Stojanche Angelov, director of DZS.

The crisis centre also said an early-detection system using smart cameras identified a fire near the village of Nikushtak in the Lipkovo municipality, and that the Territorial Firefighting Unit in Kumanovo and the National Forests branch were alerted immediately.

Author: Emilija Misirlievski

Photo: dzs / Facebook