Agency staff carried out an on-site inspection a day earlier, estimating that about 30.66 hectares inside the park were burned or affected by fire.

AKZM, together with its Vlora regional office and other state agencies, said it had taken full measures to restore safety for the local community, businesses in the area and the park’s many visitors.

“The assessment of damage and losses to forests and pastures is a necessary step in the recovery phase. Solidarity, joint efforts and psychological as well as emotional recovery are guiding principles at this stage,” the agency said in a statement.

The fire started in Krane village in the Mesopotam administrative unit and spread toward Pecë, near the Blue Eye site. Authorities said continuous efforts by firefighting teams prevented the blaze from reaching the protected natural monument.

According to the Ministry of Defence, 67 firefighters with 11 engines, 30 municipal personnel, 80 armed forces troops with 10 vehicles, six ambulances, 30 support workers and an Italian “Canadair” aircraft were deployed to extinguish the flames on Sopot Mountain slopes.

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Through an investment by the Ministry of Tourism and Environment, the project includes parking lots, new road, a bicycle lane stretching to the highest panoramic areas.

The Minister of Tourism and Environment, Mirela Kumbaro, accompanied by the prefect of Vlora district, Flamur Mamaj, inspected the ongoing works to rehabilitate the area around the Blue Eye.

“The Blue Eye spring will be transformed into Natural Park under the latest decision by the National Territorial Council. The decision will be definitely endorsed by the Council of Ministers next week to grant the natural park status to a much wider and larger natural territory extending beyond the Blue Eye area,” Tourism and Environment Minister said.

Kumbaro said that the natural park will cover a total area o f290 hectares and it is part of the government’s vision to preserve and turn this gem of Albania’s nature into a source of green economy.

Located near Muzinë, the Blue Eye is a water spring with a magical blue colour, considered a natural paradise, as well as a gem of summer tourism. The protected zone includes water systems, forests, meadows and agricultural land.

The region’s mountainous territory gives for surprising and dramatic landscapes – to be enjoyed either for their own sake or as the backdrop of historical sites, like the ancient cities of Butrint and Byllis or the modern city of Gjirokastër, a UNESCO World Heritage site.

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