Bosanska Krupa: 49 Fires in 60 Days

(Patria) - With the arrival of good weather and the intensification of work on the maintenance of fields and homesteads, the number of reports of fires in low vegetation, meadows and forests has typically increased at the same time. Such activities by citizens and the intensity of the fires for this time of year could be considered normal, but the events of the past days at the end of February and the beginning of March have exceeded the usual occurrences.

The Professional Fire Brigade (PVJ) of the Bosanska Krupa Municipality recorded 49 fires in the first 60 days of this year, and in the period from February 28 to March 4 alone, as many as 23 fires, mostly of open space – low vegetation and forest.

"During these events, several cases were recorded where the fire entered parts of plots near residential and commercial buildings, thereby endangering them, causing significant material damage to auxiliary structures, stored construction materials, stored firewood, and wooden poles of the low-voltage network.

Thanks to the interventions of the firefighting forces of the Bosanska Krupa Municipality, greater damage was prevented. During these activities, the Fire Operations Center (VOC) engaged the firefighting forces of the PVJ of the Bosanska Krupa Municipality, the voluntary fire brigades 'DVD Bosanska Krupa' and 'VD Otoka'.

In one part of the fire, forces of the Una-Sana Forests Public Enterprise, Regional Unit Bosanska Krupa, were engaged in the forest areas managed by that company. Earlier appeals have obviously yielded no results, and on this occasion we again call on and warn the population to be cautious when burning weeds, but also to report any persons who intentionally set fires, for which we have reasonable suspicions," stated the Bosanska Krupa Fire Brigade.

According to the Criminal Code of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, "whoever sets fire to another's house or other building intended for housing or economic use, or another's business building or building for public use, and whoever causes a forest fire resulting in large-scale damage, or simultaneously causes multiple forest fires, shall be punished by imprisonment for a term of one to eight years."
Furthermore, it is stipulated that "whoever causes a fire in a protected forest, national park, orchard or other forest of special purpose, or in a grain field, may receive a prison sentence of two to 12 years, and whoever commits the criminal offense of causing a fire through negligence faces a fine or a prison sentence of up to three years."