Series of Major Fires in the County, Huge Losses. Firefighters: Arson Cannot Be Ruled Out

As reported by the Bolesławiec County Headquarters of the State Fire Service:

The first fire broke out at around 2 p.m. near Różyniec and Krzyżowa, where approximately 24 hectares of stubble, 1 hectare of standing grain, young trees on private land and approximately 1 hectare of pine forest belonging to Modła Forest District were burning. As many as 34 vehicles and more than one hundred firefighters from State Fire Service and Volunteer Fire Service units in Bolesławiec County and several neighboring counties were deployed to extinguish this major fire. In addition, two firefighting aircraft operated by the State Forests also dropped water.

The entire operation lasted approximately six hours, and a large area of pine forest was saved from burning. Officials: – An operational group from the Lower Silesian Provincial Headquarters of the State Fire Service in Wrocław also took part in the operation. Using an unmanned aerial vehicle, it checked the extent of the fire and any remaining hot spots from the air. Unfortunately, losses in crops and forests, as well as the costs of the operations carried out, can be estimated at several dozen thousand złoty.

Another fire, also at around 2 p.m., broke out near Wierzbowa. The Bolesławiec headquarters said:

The fire consumed forest undergrowth over an area of approximately 0.5 hectares in a forest belonging to Chocianów Forest District. Firefighting operations were carried out by 14 firefighters using one vehicle from the Bolesławiec Rescue and Firefighting Unit and three from Volunteer Fire Service units in Gromadka Municipality. The entire operation lasted approximately four hours.

The third fire was reported at approximately 3:30 p.m. near Kraśnik Górny, where the fire covered an area of 9 hectares consisting of stubble with straw bales, a rapeseed crop and forest on private land. Firefighters said:

The spread of the fire was brought under control by nine vehicles and 38 firefighters from State Fire Service and Volunteer Fire Service units in Bolesławiec County. The entire operation lasted approximately three hours, and preliminary losses were estimated at more than 10,000 złoty.

Officials added:

Unfortunately, in all cases the probable cause of the fires may have been human activity, through accidental ignition or deliberate arson.

And they appealed:

In view of the above, firefighters from the Bolesławiec County Headquarters of the State Fire Service appeal to everyone to exercise particular caution when carrying out agricultural work, as well as while staying in forests. This summer, the moisture level of grass, agricultural crops and forest undergrowth is so low that the use of any open fire in fields and forests must be avoided. Damage to the natural environment, as well as the costs of firefighting operations, are costs borne by society as a whole.

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