North Macedonia battled a wave of destructive wildfires on Wednesday, with over 20 separate blazes tearing through the country and edging dangerously close to residential areas. Officials suggested that some of the fires may have been deliberately set, compounding an already tense situation.
Late Wednesday, the national crisis management centre reported that strong winds continued to fuel 21 active wildfires. The government had declared a nationwide state of emergency the previous day as flames erupted in multiple regions, including fresh outbreaks around the capital, Skopje.
By evening, dense smoke had engulfed Skopje, choking the city’s skyline and prompting health warnings. One particularly intense fire broke out at an illegal dumpsite just two kilometres from the city centre, leaving at least one person injured. Residents were urged to remain indoors and keep their windows tightly shut as emergency teams worked to contain the crisis.
Police also found a body near a wildfire in a village close to the eastern town of Kriva Palanka, the interior ministry said. The cause of death was not immediately announced.
As wildfires continued to spread across North Macedonia, local leaders in affected areas sounded urgent calls for assistance. In the southern town of Dojran, Mayor Ango Angov pleaded for aerial firefighting support as flames edged dangerously close to the nearby village of Nikolic and threatened a steel factory.
Further east in Kriva Palanka, the mayor appealed for community volunteers to bolster firefighting efforts amid the worsening crisis.
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Responding to the escalating emergency, Greece dispatched two firefighting aircraft and two fire trucks to aid operations in Dojran, according to reports from the state-run MIA news agency.
President Gordana Siljanovska Davkova swiftly authorised military intervention, mobilising 150 soldiers to support overstretched firefighting crews on the ground.
Interior Minister Pance Toskovski revealed that while soaring temperatures and powerful winds were driving the infernos, authorities suspected that some blazes had been deliberately set. He confirmed that investigations were under way to identify possible arsonists behind the devastation.