Easter fires are typically bonfires lit before, during, or after Easter Sunday as part of secular and religious celebrations. Folklorist Maria Ciocanu, of the National Museum of Ethnography in Chisinau, said fire making is aimed at driving evil sprits away. In the past, the people used wood for bonfires, but now the young people use more tires.

According to the folklorist, the fire is an element met often in the Christian traditions. The people used to light bonfires in cemeteries. They burned very old crosses and used the ash as incense at graves. The young people made a big wheel from straw and pushed it down from a hill. “All these traditions were based on the symbol of fire and the power of fire to bring health and to protect the people and cemeteries from evil spirits,” said Maria Ciocanu.

Fire can feature prominently during solemn Easter Vigil celebrations held after sunset on Holy Saturday. Such a fire might be used to light a Paschal candle or other candles used symbolically before or during mass or other religious celebration.

Ecologists say the burning of tires leads to the pollution of atmosphere. Under the Code of Administrative Offenses, such an act is punished with a fine of 400 to 800 lei or up to 60 hours of community service for private individuals and a fine of 4,000 to 6,000 lei for legal entities.