Wildfire in the Balkan Mountains was put out

The wildfire in Stara Planina (Balkan) mountains near Bulgaria’s border with Serbia has been put out, the Head of the firefighting department said on October 30. It is supposed that although a very large area was affected by the fire, the damages were not huge, becuase mainly dry grass and shrubs were burning.

The fire in the Serbian side has been brought under control but the situation there remains worrying because of the high temperatures and the wind.

More than 200 people have been battling the raging fire for 3 days.

Serbian news agencies said today that the country has asked for help from Russia as well. Bulgarian authorities are also in constant contact with Belgrade.

Nikolai Nikolov, Chief Commissioner, head of firefighting service: Last night, we discussed, including with the Bulgarian Prime Minister, how Bulgaria could help. 33 firefighters with 4 fire engines and 2 all-terrain vehicles were waiting to be invited to go to Serbia to help. Late last night, we received a call from Serbia and they said "Thank you, we seem to be dealing with the situation so far".

Firefighters have ruled out the possibility that the fire could spread to the Bulgarian part of the mountain, but they will remain on duty in the area tonight.