Strong wind spreads forest fire in Pirin Mountain

Firefighters and volunteers managed to save the village of Ploski from the large fire that has been raging in the western part of the Pirin Mountain for the fifth day now. On Tuesday, at around 11:30 p.m., the evacuation of 500 residents began. Some of them went to their relatives and friends, while others were accommodated in the sports hall in the town of Sandanski.

Many men stayed and helped the firefighters keep the flames away from the houses. Helicopters will also be extinguishing the fire and two Swedish planes are expected to join at noon.

Chief Commissioner Alexander Dzhartov, Director of "Fire Safety", announced that 6 helicopters will be extinguishing fires in the country on Wednesday. So far, 5 helicopters from Hungary, Slovakia, Romania and France have arrived under the European Civil Protection Mechanism.

The village of Lilyanovo near Ploski is currently not so threatened, but a bulldozer is making clearings there to prevent the flames from reaching the houses, Sandanski Mayor Atanas Stoyanov told Bulgarian National Radio.