Defence minister, Niko Peleshi announced this Sunday that because of the high winds currently present in the northern regions of the country, the intensity of the wildfires there has escalated.

In his announcement posted on Facebook, Peleshi gave a rundown of the current state of things in the area:

• Terbun Mountain, Puke – wildfires have been normalized.
• Flet village, Fushe-Arrez – intervention from the air has been interrupted because of electric wires that put the pilots’ lives in danger.
• Kryezi village Puke – the situation is under control.
• Dardha village, Puke – dangerous wildfires, rescue teams are working to isolate them.
• Patelej village, Lezha – the wildfire continues to spread because of the high wind. 15 hectares of forestland has been burned including bushland and trees. Until now, residential homes aren’t at risk but the fires are nonetheless moving on and heading North-East.
• Thirre village, Mirdite – the situation has gotten worse, 140 hectares of farmland have been scorched. The fire is impossible to manage solely from the land.
• Peak of Runa, Loop of Apples and the Loop of Pigs, Kukes – the situation is problematic, the harsh terrains make it difficult to isolate the area.
• Qafe Murre, Diber – situation under control, no risk for residential areas as wildfires have moved on to a rocky terrain with little vegetation.
• Kacni village, Diber – even though efforts were added the situation remains out of control and the fire is closing in on the Pines territory that is part of the Klos municipality. The speed at which they are spreading is average. 20 hectares of forestland are implicated.

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