A 74-year-old citizen was arrested in Portuguesa, accused of causing a raging fire in the Guanare municipal landfill that affected vegetation and solid waste, just behind a gas plant.
The fire spread to terraces 1 and 2 of the site and its surroundings, generating a dense column of smoke that spread throughout the city, causing alarm in the population and occupying Firefighters, the National Guard, Civil Protection and the Mayor’s Office in the control work.
According to the official report, the incident was caused by people who are dedicated to collecting waste at the landfill, including a septuagenarian who is detained and another subject who managed to escape.
The Fire Department reported that 31,500 liters of water were used to combat and control the fire between 3:00 p.m. and the night of this Wednesday, February 18, work that continues this Thursday to comply with “the total extinction of the fire and mitigate environmental pollution and the serious health problems that toxic gases can cause” that derive from the solid waste fire.
The extinguishing, cooling and removal operations of solid waste continue to be carried out on terrace 2 of the landfill, with heavy machinery and three water tanks arranged by the municipal government, forest firefighters and Civil Protection.
