Fires blazing through Albania have spread up north of the country. The EU has been assisting the country with resources needed to tackle the wildfires.
ADVERTISEMENTAlbanian authorities enter a third week of fighting fires that have been raging through the country. The blazes were predominantly located in southern Albania but have made their way up to the country’s north. Three new fires were reported in the northeastern district of Diber, as well as another fire in the central Albanian district of Elbasan.
Earlier last week, Albanian Interior Minister Taulant Balla confirmed that the government asked for help from the European Commission’s Emergency Response Coordination Centre (ERCC). He states that the remote mountainous areas were impossible to reach by the emergency services, and that the team were only using one Cougar helicopter.
Albania, who are a member of the EU Civil Protection Mechanism since 2022, are able to receive assistance from other countries if they are struck by a disaster. In a response to the on-going wildfires in the country, multiple Canadair planes came from neighbouring Greece to help extinguish flames.
A State Supreme Audit found that Albania’s fire engines are old and badly maintained. The report also shows that while the Defence Ministry is in possession of four helicopters to use in emergencies, only one of them is active, as others were rejected from failing safety tests.
While drones are not used to put out fires directly, the General Director of the Fire Department, Arben Cara, says the police have Bayraktar drones that can spot and assess fire hotspots from above. According to him, this has really helped them to come up with effective plans to control the fires.
Because of its high temperatures and landscape, Albania is prone to summer wildfires - which burn an average of 10 thousand hectares of land annually.