Boat Flare Starts Dune Fire At Gozo’s Ramla Bay, Narrowly Missing Volunteers And Protected Turtle Nests
A flare fired from a boat anchored at Gozo’s Ramla Bay last night ended up not only narrowly missing ministry security officials and volunteers watching over three loggerhead turtle nests, but also causing a fire in the beach’s protected sand dunes.
The flare, which Nature Trust’s Gozo section said was “fired horizontally from the boat in the direction of the turtle nest area”, ended in the protected sand dunes of the Ramla Natura 2000 site. “The volunteers reported that the flare barely missed the group on the beach, gazebos and nests causing alarm,” Nature Trust continued.
View this post on Instagram
“Besides it being illegal to fire a flare unless in need of help as Mayday SOS, the direction for flares is usually at an angle towards the vertical and not horizontal,” a statement issued this morning continued. “There is also currently an Environmental Conservation Order covering the bay and beach because of three loggerhead turtle nests of which one is actually in the third hatching night right now.”
The worrying incident was immediately reported to the Police and ERA, who Nature Trust said “came shortly to the site”.
“We hope those responsible are identified,” NTM finished off, sharing two photos of the beach fire taken by its volunteers last night.
What do you make of this case?
READ NEXT: Discover, Innovate, Inspire: Uniting Science And Society At Science In The City 2024
