Deliblatska Pescara Fire Contained After Six Weeks
The fire in the Deliblatska Pescara, which broke out on August 2 in Sumarak, was contained after a month and a half, Minister Ivica Dacic announced.
A fire that broke out on August 2 in the village of Sumarak, in the Deliblatska Pescara, has been contained after nearly a month and a half. The news was announced on September 15 by First Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister in the caretaker government, Ivica Dacic.
“After nearly a month and a half, firefighter rescuers, together with pilots from the Helicopter Unit, members of volunteer firefighting societies and other forces engaged in the operation, succeeded in containing the fire in the Deliblatska Pescara. I want to point out that we had no casualties in this operation, which is always our priority,” Dacic said in a statement from the Interior Ministry.
More Than 10,000 People on the Ground
According to Interior Ministry data, more than 10,000 firefighter rescuers and members of other services took part in putting out the fire. The minister said conditions on the ground were extremely difficult and the situation complex, which made the firefighting effort harder.
In addition to the firefighter rescuers, pilots from the Interior Ministry’s Helicopter Unit and members of volunteer firefighting societies were also deployed. Members of the Serbian Armed Forces, workers from the public companies Vojvodinasume and Srbijavode, and crews from Elektrodistribucija Srbije were also in the field.
Help Arrived From Six Countries
Part of the forces engaged in the firefighting effort came from abroad. Firefighting and rescue teams were sent in support by Romania, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Germany, Hungary and the Russian Federation.
“In addition to the firefighter rescuers, the pilots of the Helicopter Unit and the volunteer firefighting societies, members of the Serbian Armed Forces, employees of the public companies Vojvodinasume and Srbijavode, and crews from Elektrodistribucija Srbije took part in the operation. I also want to express great gratitude to the international firefighting and rescue teams from Romania, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Germany, Hungary and the Russian Federation,” Minister Dacic said.
Not a single house burned down during the entire operation. All the inhabited settlements in the Deliblatska Pescara that were at any point threatened by the fire were successfully defended. There were no casualties in the entire operation.
“Thanks to the effective response of the responsible services, all the inhabited settlements in the territory of the Deliblatska Pescara that were at any point endangered were successfully defended from the fire. I want to point out that not a single house burned down, and I am especially proud of that,” the minister said.
Dacic said the forces in the field would be reduced in line with the situation, with duty shifts continuing and the burned area kept under watch. The Interior Ministry’s Emergency Situations Sector said it would keep monitoring the ground to prevent the fire from flaring up again.
The Interior Ministry has not yet released a figure for how many hectares of forest and sand in the Deliblatska Pescara were affected by the fire between August 2 and the moment it was contained.
