It has now been three days that the landfill in Vlora has been engulfed in flames, causing massive pollution at the peak of the tourist season in the coastal city.
In a statement to the media, the Mayor of Vlora Ermal Dredha said that all institutions are on the ground and working to normalize the situation.
He added that during Sunday, there was also an aerial intervention by a helicopter from the Ministry of Defense.
“It is a challenging situation, but all the institutional actors in Vlora, starting from the Municipality, the Fire Department, and the Prefect, are engaged. During the night, a team from the Ministry of Defense arrived as well. Today, as you can see, there was an aerial intervention, and the situation looks better, but we need to continue to manage this situation with full intensity,” said Dredha.
He expressed hope that the fires are caused by high temperatures and “not by people who want to intentionally damage the city”.
The mayor added that a solution to the situation could be to resume work at the landfill that has already been built.
“The long-term solution is to resume work. However, there are some legal obstacles that need to be addressed. We are in daily communication and hope to resolve it since there are some legal clauses that need to be considered with interest,” said Dredha.
Euronews Albania cameras travelled to the landfill in Vlora. Reporting from there, journalist Enriko Gabaj says that there are about 200 employees on-site who are trying to neutralize the fire. Trucks carrying water are coming from different areas of Vlora to cover the piles of burning waste. “The area is very close to the city entrance. The situation is critical as the entire city has been invaded by smoke for three days. There are no flames at the moment, but the working teams are throwing water. According to information, four or five houses have been filled with smoke and are at risk of catching fire,” reported the journalist.
He also mentioned that the problem lies in the active fire spots at the bottom of the waste piles, which are favoring the spread of flames.
