Senate

Over $1 Million Spent on Bovoni Landfill Fire Response, Lawmakers Learn During Comprehensive After-Action Update

On Wednesday, lawmakers received a comprehensive final update on the multi-agency efforts to combat the recent fire at the Bovoni Landfill, which burned and smoldered for weeks in September before it was finally extinguished.  Daryl Jaschen, director of the V.I. Territorial Management Agency, provided joint testimony on behalf of government agencies. He noted that the Bovoni fire unified command met twice daily until October 4, and told lawmakers that over 1.85 million gallons of water were used in firefighting efforts. Conditions were exacerbated because “virtually no precipitation fell on the Bovoni Landfill” during the 22-day operation, he said.  Mr. Jaschen noted that off-island support came from Puerto Rico’s National Guard, which spent two days dousing the fire with seawater using a helicopter bucket. The support from Puerto Rico was made possible via a governor-to-governor Emergency Management Assistance Compact, which ensures that the almost $74,000 cost incurred over the two...