Due to the large fire that broke out at the Uborak landfill this morning and caused almost complete material damage at the site, the City of Mostar declared a state of emergency in order to enable the competent services to act quickly and efficiently in the remediation of the consequences and the organization of temporary waste disposal.
Mayor of Mostar Mario Kordić stated after an extraordinary session of the city and county Civil Protection headquarters that the fire caused enormous damage to the landfill field, as well as concern among citizens due to the smoke that hung over the city.
- Immediately after the report, all competent services – firefighters, police, ambulance and other services – went to the scene. We found a huge fire that devastated the Buđevci and Uborak sites. The recycling hall with its complete facilities burned down, the equipment at the landfill was damaged, and thanks to the efforts of the firefighters, the administrative building was saved – said Kordić.
According to him, the damage is almost 100%, and the resulting situation represents a big problem not only for Mostar but also for the wider region.
Kordić said that the declaration of a state of emergency enables the Civil Protection Headquarters to issue urgent orders and implement measures necessary to overcome the crisis, especially when it comes to the organization of waste disposal after the Uborak landfill suffered major damage.
He called on citizens to behave responsibly with waste and not to dispose of communal and solid waste on public surfaces until further notice, so as not to put an additional burden on the communal system.
At the same time, economic entities were ordered to take recyclable waste, such as packaging and glass, to the recycling yard in Bišće Polje, while utility companies were ordered to draw up a plan for the reorganization of the waste disposal system.
- We are currently in communication with other landfills in order to find a location for temporary waste disposal until the situation at Uborko is remedied – said Kordić.
Speaking about extinguishing the fire, he stated that all available forces were engaged, including professional firefighting units, volunteer firefighting societies, air forces and the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
As he said, the fire is currently localized within the circle of the landfill and has not spread to the surrounding area.
When asked about the possible cause of the fire, Kordić said that he did not want to speculate and that the police were involved in the investigation, stressing that the focus of all institutions must currently be on remediating the consequences.
He added that the Government of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Federal Prime Minister Nermin Nikšić and Federal Minister of Environment and Tourism Nasiha Pozder have offered help to the city, and that the possibility of declaring a state of emergency will be considered at higher levels of government to provide additional assistance for damage repair.
Commander of the Civil Protection Headquarters of the Herzegovina-Neretva County, Adil Šuta, assessed that this is an ecological disaster, the full consequences of which are yet to be seen.
- We have put all available forces at our disposal, requested the help of other municipalities and will undertake all necessary activities to prevent the further spread of the consequences and enable the smooth functioning of the city. This is an extremely difficult situation for Mostar and the entire region – said Šuta.
Competent services continue activities on extinguishing fires, assessing damage and establishing alternative solutions for municipal waste disposal.
