The incident took place on May 2.
Firefighters from Warta Bolesławiecka:
12:52
Dispatch to a dry grass fire on wasteland in Tomaszów Bolesławiecki.
The threat was eliminated and no one was injured. Firefighters from Bolesławiec, Warta Bolesławiecka and Tomaszów Bolesławiecki took part in the operation.
As stated on gov.pl, in 2023 firefighters in Poland responded 21,206 times to grass and agricultural wasteland fires. In Lower Silesia alone, there were more than 2,000 interventions.
The government website adds:
Unfortunately, in 2023, grass and wasteland fires resulted in the following:
- Number of fatalities: 3
- Number of injured people: 36
- Water used: 58,629 m3 (58,629,431 l)
- Area: 5,774 ha (57.7 km2)
- Total fire losses: PLN 68,992,900
- Average operation duration: 56 min and 36 s
- Grass-fire callouts occurred on average every 10 min.
The State Fire Service’s “Stop Grass Fires” social campaign began on March 1. Gov.pl: – For many years now, the transition from winter to spring and early spring have been periods when the number of meadow and wasteland fires clearly increases. Many people burn grass and agricultural wasteland, explaining their actions by a desire to enrich the soil. For generations, many people have believed that burning grass will make it regrow faster and more abundantly, thereby bringing economic benefits. However, this is completely mistaken thinking. Reality shows that burning grass leads to irreversible, harmful changes in the natural environment – the soil becomes impoverished, the highly beneficial natural decomposition of plant remains is halted, as is the assimilation of nitrogen from the air. A number of chemical compounds that are poisonous to both people and animals enter the atmosphere. Burning grass is also the cause of many fires, which unfortunately often lead to fatal accidents as well. Every year, several people die in incidents of this kind.
It also adds:
Areas of dried vegetation from the previous year, which, due to the vegetation periods occurring at that time, provide excellent combustible material, combined with high human activity in this sector, result in a sharp increase in fires. People are responsible for more than 94% of their causes.
Wind also helps the fire spread. People who, against all logic, decide to burn grass are convinced that they are fully in control of the situation and will react in time if necessary. Unfortunately, they are mistaken, and sometimes this ends in tragedy. In the event of a sudden change in its direction, fires very often get out of control and spread to nearby forests and buildings. In many such fires, people lose everything they have accumulated over their lifetimes. There is also a direct threat to people’s health and lives.
And warns:
Those who nevertheless want to take the risk must also reckon with the consequences:
- That such conduct is prohibited is stated, among other things, in the Act of September 1, 2022 – an amendment to the Nature Conservation Act, which added Article 130a, stating that a person who removes vegetation by burning it on agricultural land, railway areas, roadside strips, reed beds or rushes is subject to arrest, restriction of liberty or a fine of up to PLN 30,000.
(…)
item 1. Anyone who removes vegetation by burning it on agricultural land, railway areas, roadside strips, reed beds or rushes is subject to arrest, restriction of liberty or a fine of up to PLN 30,000.- Article 30(3) of the Act of September 28, 1991 on Forests (Journal of Laws of 2017, No. 12, item 59, as amended):
(…) in forests and forested areas, as well as within 100 m of the forest boundary, activities and actions that may cause danger are prohibited, in particular:
– lighting fires outside places designated for this purpose by the forest owner or forest district manager, using open flames, burning the top layer of soil and plant residues.- Such offenses carry severe penalties: Article 82 of the Act of May 20, 1971, Code of Petty Offenses (Journal of Laws of 2018, item 618, as amended):
(...) arrest, reprimand or a fine which, pursuant to Article 24(1), may range from PLN 20 to PLN 5,000. Article 163(1) of the Act of June 6, 1997, Criminal Code (Journal of Laws of 2017, item 2204, as amended) provides: “Anyone who causes an incident endangering the life or health of many people or property on a large scale, taking the form of a fire, is subject to imprisonment for between one and 10 years”.
And also reminds readers:
Every intervention involves a significant financial expense. Firefighters involved in extinguishing grass, meadow and wasteland fires may at the same time be needed to save lives and property elsewhere. It may happen that, because of people’s recklessness, they fail to reach those who truly need help in time.