1. VARIOUS OF DRONE SHOTS OF WILDFIRE IN MOUNTAINOUS AREA
2. SMOKE AND FLAMES ABOVE HILLS
3. VARIOUS OF FIREFIGHTER HELICOPTER DROPPING WATER, SMOKE RISING OVER WILDFIRE AREA
4. VARIOUS OF SMOKE RISING FORM HILLS
5. VARIOUS OF FIREFIGHTER HELICOPTER FLYING OVER WILDFIRE AREA
6. SMOKE OVER HILLS
7. DRONE OPERATOR AND PRESS OFFICER FOR ALBANIA’S NATIONAL AGENCY OF CIVIL PROTECTION, LEDJO HOXHA LAUNCHING DRONE WITH THERMAL CAMERA
8. VARIOUS OF DRONE WITH THERMAL CAMERA FLYING TOWARDS WILDFIRE AREA
9. (SOUNDBITE) (English) DRONE OPERATOR AND PRESS OFFICER FOR ALBANIA’S NATIONAL AGENCY OF CIVIL PROTECTION, LEDJO HOXHA, SAYING: “More than 100 people from the ground are working. Till now, we had two Canadair from the seal protection mechanism, which helped us and now we are operating with two helicopters from the Armed Forces of Albania. This situation is a little bit difficult because of the terrain, which is rough. It’s difficult for the ground forces to arrive; also, it’s difficult for the helicopters and planes to operate because of the steep mountains which are there.”
10. DRONE WITH THERMAL CAMERA FLYING TOWARDS WILDFIRE AREA
11. (SOUNDBITE) (English) DRONE OPERATOR AND PRESS OFFICER FOR ALBANIA’S NATIONAL AGENCY OF CIVIL PROTECTION, LEDJO HOXHA, SAYING: “During this season, we are operating also with the drones, which are helping us with the thermal cameras and their wide angle and the zoom, so we can do a correct planning. So how we can maximize the effort of the ground forces and the helicopters, how they need to be as soon as possible in the operation zone. How is the spread of the fire? Where are the hotspots of the wildfires? We use the thermal cameras for this. So we give these images to the pilots of the helicopter so they can do their permission briefing and they can go directly on the mission without losing time.”
12. VARIOUS OF HELICOPTER DROPPING WATER
13. VARIOUS OF SMOKE ABOVE HILLS STORY: Albanian firefighters battled a wildfire in the mountainous region of Dukat, on Tuesday (July 22), using aerial and ground resources to combat the blaze in challenging terrain. National Agency of Civil Protection deployed drones equipped with thermal cameras to assist in planning and coordinating firefighting efforts. “We use the thermal cameras to identify hotspots and the spread of the fire. We give these images to the helicopter pilots so they can go directly on the mission without losing time,” said Ledjo Hoxha, drone operator and the agency’s press officer. Firefighters assisted by four aircraft from Italy and Greece battled two wildfires at a national park in the north and near the southwestern village of Dukat. Last month, large parts of Western Europe sweltered in another severe heatwave that left many dead and triggered forest fires and health alerts across the region. Across the globe, 2024 was the warmest year on record, with temperatures exceeding 1.5 degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial era for the first time.