Battle to control garbage fire, resident evictions planned

Explosive charges, earth covering, and industrial foam shipped from Texas are all being used to try and douse the continuing fire at the Cerro Patacon garbage dump.

Members of the State Border Service (SENAFRONT) and the Institutional Protection Service (SPI) are using small explosive charges to assist in extinguishing the fire which has been burning since Tuesday March 19.

Henry Ho, director of the Panama garbage authority (AAUD) said "The idea is to remove the soil and take oxygen to the fire. It's pretty controlled and small.”
10,000 gallons of industrial foam was due to arrive Saturday from Texas, USA.
Ho said Saturday, March 23, that during recent nights the low wind speed has caused Panama dawns to begin with a covering of a layer of white smoke.
Meanwhile in the coming weeks to residents in 15 houses close to the third stage of the landfill will be evicted says Zeno Navalo, general secretary AAUD.
Although the Executive Decree 275 of 2004 states that you cannot develop a facility of this type less than two miles away from a community Navalo said thast the eviction of Nega Guna hamlet, located about 500 meters from the new stage of the landfill is not covered by the decree. because the landfill was first used in 1985, prior to the arrival of  the 1,500 residents of the hamlet
Coordination for the eviction of 15 homes will be held with the Ministry of Housing and Land Management, he added.