The SPD ministries in the black-red coalition are pushing for a comprehensive program against the consequences of climate change and are thus increasing the pressure on the Union. In an action plan led by the Ministry of the Environment, they are calling for, among other things, a national heat action plan, better protection for employees in extreme temperatures, adjustments to building planning law and additional help for social institutions such as retirement homes and hospitals. “Spiegel” reports on this. The SPD insists on anchoring climate adaptation and nature conservation as a joint task in the Basic Law during this legislative period. This is due to increasing stress caused by heat, drought, forest fires, floods and water shortages. The Union recently rejected a corresponding change to the Basic Law.
According to the fire department there, the danger situation in Monschau on the Belgian border has eased. “We’re going back,” said operations manager Philipp Krüger in the morning. The majority of the approximately 90 emergency services were withdrawn during the night. “We currently have 20 people on site on reserve.” The city is expected to withdraw the warning shortly. The development of the fire will continue to be monitored closely and will react appropriately in an emergency and strengthen forces again if necessary. Since the night, the fire front has not moved any further towards Monschau.
Despite the large forest fire in Belgium a few kilometers from the North Rhine-Westphalian Eifel town of Monschau, which is close to the border, there are currently no plans to evacuate there. As things stand, the city sees no need to order that the approximately 5,000 residents of the Kalterherberg and Mützenich districts have to leave their homes, said a city spokeswoman.
In Hürtgenwald, firefighting work continues on the fourth day, but the situation in the affected area in western North Rhine-Westphalia is increasingly easing. As the Düren district announced, there are no longer any open flames. “The main thing in these hours is to contain the embers.” The entire affected area is now surrounded by a path of around three meters so that flames cannot spread any further. Most recently, up to 1,800 emergency services were involved in the strenuous fire-fighting work.
The city of Monschau is warning the population about “smoke pollution and smoke precipitation” from this morning. Due to possible health risks, residents of the settlements of Plattevenn and Leyloch as well as parts of the Kalterherberg district are “strongly” recommended to leave the villages by 10 a.m. “and stay with relatives and friends”. The recommendation initially applies until 6 p.m. A contact point will also be set up in the Imgenbroich Citizens Casino.
The flames of the forest fire in Belgium are currently no longer approaching the city of Monschau in North Rhine-Westphalia in the early hours of the morning. This was reported by “Bild”. “We currently have favorable wind conditions,” a spokesman told the newspaper. Shortly after midnight, the city reported that the fire was still three kilometers from the German border.
The large-scale operation due to a forest and meadow fire in Waldaschaff in Lower Franconia continues. The fire no longer flares up, it is now a matter of finding embers and extinguishing them, said a spokesman for the fire department. This will begin in the morning. Since Saturday evening, the fire had reportedly spread from initially around five hectares to a total of almost 29 hectares.
The fire department in Monschau is closely monitoring the forest fire in Belgium, but is currently not expecting the flames to spread to German territory any time soon. “We are definitely continuing to keep an eye on the situation,” said Philipp Krüger, operations manager of the Monschau fire department, to the dpa news agency. Units would now be sent on break. “We will constantly monitor the operational situation, reassess it and, if necessary, call in units.”
The situation in the Hürtgenwald has “relaxed significantly,” the Düren district announced in the evening. Fears that a thunderstorm front with gusts could reignite the fire did not come true. Most recently, up to 1,800 emergency services were involved in the extinguishing.
“The situation has improved, but the fire is far from over,” a spokesman for the Düren district told dpa. Among other things, numerous embers would have to be combated. The extinguishing work would probably take several more days.
Because of the large forest fire in the High Fens, the North Rhine-Westphalian city of Monschau is asking residents of several settlements to prepare for a possible evacuation. The people in Ruitzhof, Leyloch, Vennhof, Haus Sonnentau and Plattevenn are affected, the town on the German-Belgian border announced on its Facebook page. A little later, the districts of Kalterherberg and Mützenich were also included for possible evacuation. A spokeswoman for the city told the dpa news agency that around 5,000 people were affected. The city asked residents to have emergency luggage ready and to inform their neighbors. In addition, people are asked not to block the emergency call lines of the police and fire departments.
If possible, residents should stay with relatives or friends. The establishment of emergency accommodation is being prepared. It was initially a preventative measure, it said. The Belgian authorities ordered the evacuation of the communities of Surbrot, Bütgenbach, Küchenlscheid and Leykaul. The forest fire in the High Fens near the German border is one of the largest in Belgium's history. According to authorities, the flames have now devastated more than 2,700 hectares of forest.
