Two forest officials died in a wildfire near Sandanski, another one is in hospital

Two forest officials died in a wildfire near the village of Petrovo, Sandanski region in Southern Bulgaria, the director of the Southwestern State Enterprise, Damyan Damyanov, told BNT on August 4.

A third forest official was injured, he was taken to the hospital in Sandanski with burns on his back.

The tragic incident took place around 4:30 pm, when the low-burning surface fire, which was extinguished by the forest service officials, quickly developed into high-intensity fire and they were trapped.

It is not yet clear whether the forest officials died from burns or suffocated. Their colleagues found them on a road that is not within the perimeter of the fire.

Firefighters continue the efforts to extinguish the fire.It has spread on an area of about 20 decares of forest and bushes. The terrain is extremely complex and the wind is very strong.