The wildfire near Svilengrad is one of the largest ever recorded in the country

For fifth consecutive day, firefighters continue to battle wildfire that has burned across and burned through more than 100,000 acres of land, of which 24,000 acres are forests in Sakar mountain in Southern Bulgaria. The fire is one of the largest in the country.

Late last night the fire reached the village of Levka. It burned down a cow farm, but the animals were not hurt because they were grazing. The fire was brought under control just before it reached people’s homes.

"They stopped it 20-30 metres away from the houses, maybe 10 more minutes and the houses would have been gone. I had filled a car with luggage, whatever I could pack and I was just about to leave," said Zhelyazko Georgiev, a resident.

"I cannot sleep. I wake up during the night and check around to make sure the fires are not approaching us," Ruska Miteva said.

A total of18 teams of firefighters, two military helicopters, volunteers, forestry workers and heavy equipment are battling the blaze, which is burning on several fronts. There are several critical points.

"A coniferous forest near Studena - Mihaltsi. There the fire is developing with strong winds, you can see what the situation is here. It has spread across a very large area, explained Senior Commissioner Lubomir Barov - Deputy Director of the Fire Safety and Protection of the Population Directorate.

Due to the strong wind and high temperatures, the flames spread across the lands of the villages of Studena, Dervishka Mogila, Mustrak, Ravna Gora and Levka. As a result of the heavy smoke, traffic to the village of Levka from Studena and from Svilengrad was temporarily stopped. The fire is isolated and so far there is no risk of spreading to the territory of neighboring country Turkey.