CHARLOTTE AMALIE — Governor Albert Bryan issued an Executive Order declaring a State of Emergency throughout the U.S. Virgin Islands in response to an ongoing fire at the Bovoni Landfill.
Smoke from the fire, which has been burning since Sept. 14, can be seen and smelled for miles and the resulting poor air quality has caused schools and businesses to close.
The fire is not sustainably contained and external assistance is required to extinguish the flames below the surface of the green waste area of the Bovoni Landfill. Immediate action must be taken to secure the necessary support to extinguish the fire, including coordination of fire-fighting assistance through the Emergency Management Assistance Compact.
The Executive Order that Bryan issued designates Fire EMS Executive Director Daryl George as the incident commander to direct the territorial response and execute the directives for enforcement of the order. It further designates the Virgin Islands Fire and Emergency Medical Services as the lead agency to coordinate emergency response activities in conjunction with the Virgin Islands Territorial Emergency Management Agency (VITEMA). The Incident Commander and Director of VITEMA shall advise the Office of the Governor on the implementation of the emergency response activities.