Kula Landfill Fire Continues for Third Day Amidst Unanswered Questions

The "Lapoš" landfill near Kula, Serbia, is engulfed in flames for the third consecutive day, sending plumes of smoke into the air and raising serious environmental and health concerns. Firefighters are actively working to contain the blaze, but the lingering smell of smoke indicates the fire is still smoldering.

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When you see the flame, then perhaps you can think it's not so bad, but smoldering fires are the ones that carry the worst carcinogenic substances with them.

This incident is the fourth landfill fire to occur in the Kula municipality this summer, highlighting a recurring problem. Environmental experts warn that smoldering fires are particularly dangerous, releasing carcinogenic substances into the atmosphere. Residents are breathing in toxic air, and even firefighters on the scene are exposed to hazardous conditions without adequate protective gear, such as masks.

Official information regarding the cause of the fire remains elusive. While tabloid media have suggested that surveillance footage captured the ignition and that the recordings have been handed over to authorities, opposition groups are demanding verification and the release of any existing video evidence. They dismiss accusations that protesters caused the fire as baseless.

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Citizens are choking, breathing poison, children are breathing poison, and that is of course not normal, but the worst case in this whole situation is that the firefighters who are actively working on extinguishing it are also breathing poison because they work without protection, without masks that would save their lives.

Environmental specialists suggest that the fire could have been prevented if the landfill's temperature had been monitored. Proactive monitoring could have indicated an impending fire. Meanwhile, this situation follows previous incidents, such as a weeks-long fire at a landfill in Sivac, where opposition parties filed criminal charges against local authorities for allegedly misleading the public about air quality by only measuring PM10 particles and ignoring other harmful pollutants that could cause panic.

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And to release those video recordings if they really exist, otherwise it is meaningless to blame the blockers for something we did not do, and it's a children's story.

As the "Lapoš" landfill continues to smolder, the community awaits answers regarding the fire's origin, the current state of air quality, and concrete steps to prevent future occurrences. The lack of official communication fuels public anxiety and demands for accountability.

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If someone had monitored the temperature at this landfill for a certain period, they could have seen that a fire would occur earlier, and it could have been prevented.