The fire brigade has been called out due to forest and vegetation fires not only in the west of North Rhine-Westphalia around Hürtgenwald or in the German-Belgian border area near Monschau. There have also been fires in other regions of Germany in the past few days - or are still burning. An overview of selected fire sources in various federal states:
Baden-Württemberg
In Baden-Württemberg, the fire brigade dealt with smaller fires at the weekend. Near Heilbronn, more than 100 emergency services extinguished a wildfire on Saturday that had also spread into a forest. According to the fire department, almost 10,000 square meters were temporarily on fire.
According to the fire department, around 600 square meters of forest burned in Baden-Baden on Saturday. The emergency services prevented the fire from spreading further.
Bavaria
At temperatures of more than 30 degrees and sometimes strong winds, hundreds of emergency services put out several forest fires in Bavaria over the weekend. According to the fire department, around 29 hectares burned in Waldaschaff in Lower Franconia. It was a wildfire that had spread into the adjacent forest, said Markus Fischer, district fire chief in the Aschaffenburg district. Three police helicopters dropped fire-fighting water during the operation on Saturday. In total, up to 600 emergency services were involved. According to the district fire brigade association, the fire is under control, but extinguishing work is ongoing.
According to BR24, a residential area was temporarily in danger. Several houses were therefore evacuated as a precaution, and around 80 people were affected. After the fire brigade was able to prevent the flames from spreading and there was no longer any immediate danger, the residents were allowed to return. The police have already ruled out intentional arson.
Emergency services were also deployed near Rechtenbach in Lower Franconia. According to the fire department, the affected area covered around 5,000 square meters. The fire was brought under control with a large contingent. The Technical Relief Agency (THW), Red Cross and police were also involved in the operation.
There was already a forest fire in Höchheim (Rhön-Grabfeld district) late on Friday evening, in which, according to police, around 200 emergency services were busy extinguishing the fire for several hours.
More than 200 emergency services also fought a forest fire near Oberhaid in the Bamberg district in Upper Franconia until Friday evening - according to police, seven firefighters had to receive medical care. Several farmers helped with the extinguishing work with barrel trucks, according to the police.
Rhineland-Palatinate
In the Westerwald, part of the community of Gebhardshain had to be evacuated due to a forest fire. Residents are asked to leave their apartments and houses immediately. Around 6,000 square meters are in flames.
A large forest and meadow fire occurred near Langscheid, west of Koblenz in Rhineland-Palatinate. The fire was under control on Sunday. However, embers can still flare up, according to the fire department's assessment. An area of around 50 hectares caught fire on Friday. A total of around 650 firefighters and two helicopters fought the flames for hours. However, emergency services should continue to be on site to monitor the situation and, if necessary, continue to extinguish the fire.
According to SWR, a total of 22 helpers were injured during the operation. A firefighter suffered a heart attack. Everyone else has now been able to leave the hospitals.
Saarland
Around five hectares of forest have been burning in the Saarland district of Neunkirchen since Sunday afternoon. The fire continued to spread in the afternoon and moved towards a farm near Illingen. The evacuation of the horses began there. The cloud of smoke from the fire was visible from afar and a helicopter from Hesse was also called in to fight the fire.
Saxony
The fire brigade was in action for days around the Saxon city of Plauen. On Sunday, the city announced that the situation had “relaxed significantly”. With drone support, the emergency services extinguished individual embers during the night. The forest owner continued the clean-up work with heavy forestry machines on Saturday.
In the North Saxony district, a forest area of around 4,000 square meters was damaged. The cause of the fire in Doberschütz is still unclear, the police said. However, there are indications that the fire could have been caused by humans. That's why we're now investigating.
Thuringia
In the north of Thuringia in the Eichsfeld district, a forest near Wahlhausen burned. “The fire started on the side of the road, spread through the wind and ultimately covered around 2,500 square meters of forest,” the police said. The fire department prevented the fire from spreading further.
