Fire still burning near Gracani — helicopters and 'Air Tractors' in action, village not endangered

A wildfire that crossed into North Macedonia from the Kosovo side remains active near the village of Gracani, authorities said, and firefighting teams are continuing operations both on the ground and from the air.

Air and ground crews keep pressure on the blaze

Stojanche Angelov, director of the Directorate for Protection and Rescue (DPR), said the smoke that was noticeable across many Skopje neighbourhoods last night came from this fire. He added that, although ground crews and aerial assets are working on containment, the fire has not yet been fully brought under control.

"This fire entered Macedonian territory from the Kosovo side three days ago. We are acting on it from the air and from the ground, but, unfortunately, it is still active. Early this morning Skopje firefighters, reinforced by several fire teams from the Directorate for Protection and Rescue with Pinzgauers, continued operations on this fire. They are working along the fire line, trying to reduce it. From the air, support is being provided by one army helicopter, one police helicopter, as well as two 'Air Tractors' of the Directorate for Protection and Rescue. At this moment I can say freely that the two villages, Gracani and Gigisthana, are not endangered," Angelov said.

Some of the aircraft involved have flown sorties from the Kosovo side under prior agreement between the responsible services, officials said.

Separately, a serious wildfire is burning along the border between the Struga and Debar municipalities near the villages of Burinec, Lokov and Selci. The DPR announced that two Air Tractors are expected to be dispatched this afternoon to assist Struga and Debar firefighters.

Officials also reported renewed intentional ignitions on the Kitka mountain. Firefighters have been battling flames on Kitka for about 20 days to prevent the fire reaching higher‑quality forest. "Yesterday two fires were intentionally set on Kitka — one on the territory of Studenicani municipality, one on the territory of Zelenikovo municipality. Thanks to the brave and devoted work of Skopje firefighters, these fires were extinguished. I must point out that such deliberate ignitions on the territory of the City of Skopje scatter our forces and we cannot concentrate them on the large fire that broke out on the Kosovo side," Angelov added.

Despite rain two nights ago across much of the country, 31 open‑space fires were recorded yesterday. Active incidents include a burning dump in Oktisi (Struga area) and a blaze near Bojane (Skopje area); fires at Skopska Crna Gora and near the village of Kopanica (close to Skopje) are reportedly under control.

By Ognen Chancharevic.

Photo: press material from the event