Vucic, Dacic welcome Serbian fire and rescue team that helped fight wildfires in Spain

BELGRADE - Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Interior Minister Ivica Dacic welcomed on Thursday a Serbian fire and rescue team comprised of Emergencies Sector personnel and an Interior Ministry helicopter unit recently dispatched to Spain to help the country's firefighting efforts.

At a welcoming ceremony outside the Palace of Serbia in Belgrade, team leader Davor Vidovic reported to Vucic.

The ceremony was also attended by Police Director Dragan Vasiljevic, Spanish Ambassador to Belgrade Juan Jose Sanz Aparicio and Nambinian Interior Minister Lucia Iipumbu.

The 41-member team, which operated an H-215 Super Puma firefighter helicopter, 17 firefighter vehicles and other equipment, was in Spain from July 28 as part of an EU civil protection mechanism, defending people, their homes and nature from wildfires on a daily basis.

The helicopter unit's mission in Spain began on July 30, and its most demanding day was August 2, when it carried out 48 sorties, dropping as much as 168 t of water.

Throughout its mission, it carried out 81 sorties in total, dropping more than 283 t of water.

The Interior Ministry team assisted firefighting efforts in the Castile and Leon region, especially in the vicinity of the cities of Villafranca and Ponferrada.