Skopje, 15 September 2025 (MIA) - The Trubarevo fire has been extinguished, and there was no smoke already yesterday. Although experts told us it would take seven days to put it out, we managed to do it in 30 hours thanks to the coordination of the institutions and the firefighters, Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski said.

"There was no smoke in Trubarevo as of yesterday. Looking back to the first day, authorized experts had estimated that it would take 7 to 10 days to fully control the fire. Thanks to coordinated efforts by institutions and firefighters, the situation was brought under control in less than 30 hours, with smoke completely gone,” Prime Minister Mickoski told Sitel TV, discussing the recent landfill fires.

He stated that he believes the situation in Trubarevo is under control, with a layer of soil covering the burned waste and conditions stabilized. Pollution levels are far below the exaggerated claims made by the opposition, who are spreading speculation and false information. He stressed that the situation is not life-threatening. He also noted that he is not saying this to justify the fire, but to bring calm and reassurance to citizens, since the opposition is trying to create unrest, whereas the reality, he says, is entirely different.

"In Vardarishte, we already have an agency securing the perimeter of the landfill, which was created immediately after the earthquake in Skopje, so this is a problem more than five decades old. And finally, there is Drisla; today I am in contact with the people trying to resolve the problem there, and smoke has been reduced by about 95 percent. I expect the situation to be fully resolved there by tomorrow. So I can say that through coordinated action of the institutions, these three hotspots have been addressed, even though none of them fall under state jurisdiction, especially here I refer to Drisla,” Mickoski said.

Regarding responsibility, Prime Minister Mickoski pointed out that for this purpose, about ten people from the management of Drisla have been called for questioning at the Skopje police sector. Their statements are being analyzed, and it is also expected that tomorrow they will give testimony regarding how, when the fires occur, some of Drisla’s equipment goes for servicing and is unprepared for challenges, how employees take sick leave, and how activists close to SDSM and DUI visit the landfill.

PM Mickoski stressed that all of these cases will be thoroughly investigated, and anyone who believes they will avoid punishment is wrong. He noted that four people have been arrested and are in custody in connection with Trubarevo, and the same applies to those arrested for Vardarishte, who have also been placed in custody.

He said that the Ministry of Environment has instructed the inspectorate to conduct special inspections of all licensed landfills to ensure they comply with the law, with licenses to be revoked if they do not. Municipalities have been tasked with clearing illegal landfills.

Photo: screenshot