Cuban specialized forces fight fire in eastern region of the country

HAVANA, Cuba, Feb 20 (ACN) Specialized forces are facing a large-scale fire in the mountainous area of Pinares de Mayari, in Holguin province, sources from the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment (CITMA by its Spanish acronym) reported today.

On Twitter, the head of CITMA, Elba Rosa Perez Montoya, said that the territorial delegation of the agency guarantees a permanent follow-up of the incident for environmental evaluation.

According to the aforementioned entity, the strong gusts of wind and the drought make it more difficult to face the fire.

The first secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba in the province, Ernesto Santiesteban Velazquez, visited the area of the fire in Pinares de Mayari and there he inquired about the evacuation process of children, pregnant women and elderly people, and indicated constant surveillance during the night.

On February 9, control was confirmed over a large forest fire that lasted 14 days and caused severe damage in El Prado, a mountainous area located more than 700 meters above sea level, in the municipality of Mayari, in the province of Holguin.

Detected since the afternoon of January 26, the fire was caused by the impact of the heavy drought during the last five months and the abundance of organic plant material, which favored the advance of the flames, affecting more than 1,000 hectares of forest.

The Ministry of the Interior recently announced that in January 2023, Cuba reached 80 forest fires, a figure that according to the historical records of the Forest Ranger Corps is a record for that month.

The provinces of Pinar del Rio, Artemisa, Holguin, Camagüey and the Special Municipality of Isle of Youth were the most affected territories.