TIRANA, July 31 /ATA/ The government will provide a support package for damages caused in the field of agriculture, housing or other needs that have arisen as a result of the fires.
During a coordination meeting attended by Minister of Interior Ervin Hoxha, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Anila Denaj and Director General of the National Civil Protection Agency Haki Çako, Minister of Defense Pirro Vengu said that this meeting is held for two purposes: To make an assessment of the operational readiness for Civil Emergencies and a compensation for the damages that the affected residents should receive, especially in the livestock sector.
Vengu said that, “During the month of July, there happened 59 massive fires and a multitude of smaller fires in residential or rural areas. In total, over 29 thousand hectares of area was burned”.
“It turns out that the most affected regions are Vlora with 17,500 hectares, followed by Dibra with 4,524 hectares, Tirana with 2,400 hectares and Berat with 1,500 hectares. The historical record for Albania is in 2007 with 127,000 hectares burned. Until 2024, the summer seasons had 6 fires per week, while this year there were 13 fires per week”, said Vengu.
Minister Vengu announced that a total of 14,200 people, two thousand specialized vehicles and 63 air operations have been engaged in firefighting operations throughout the country. There were also involved 4 helicopters from Albanian forces, two from Hungarian forces, two Canadians from Italy, two from Greece and one from Croatia.
“There have never been so many aircrafts available and we will continue to invest in the renewal of the ground and air fleet. However, casualties in human lives have been avoided. There are 12 homes, 3 stables, a religious object and an energy substation affected,” he continued. Vengu said that the municipalities affected by the fires in the country should continue as soon as possible to make an assessment of the damages, how many olive roots, how much pasture, how much damage there was in the protected areas and so on. /e.i/r.e/p.s./
