Two wildfires remain active in Bulgaria, with efforts to extinguish them ongoing in the Rila Mountains above the Rila Monastery and in the Pirin range near the village of Gorno Spanchevo, close to Sandanski. According to Chief Commissioner Alexander Dzhartov, head of the General Directorate for Fire Safety and Civil Protection (GDPBZN), challenging terrain continues to hamper firefighting operations, especially in mountainous areas. Speaking to BNT, he noted that such difficulties in accessing the fire front are not new but remain a serious obstacle.

The blaze near Sandanski has already affected roughly 500 acres of mixed forest. In Rila, although rainfall has somewhat dampened the area, the fire continues to smolder and poses an ongoing risk. Authorities have identified lightning strikes and storm activity as the causes of several recent fires in the region. Just yesterday, four such fires were reported in Blagoevgrad Province alone, highlighting the vulnerability of forested and inaccessible areas to natural ignition sources.

Commissioner Dzhartov emphasized that lightning-sparked fires typically ignite in remote, hard-to-reach locations, delaying detection and response. Despite a brief period of cooler weather, he warned that the country remains firmly in wildfire season and urged continued vigilance. Compared to last year, the current fire conditions are proving significantly harder to manage, he added. Nonetheless, the national BG-ALERT early warning system is operating as intended and remains a vital tool in managing fire risks.