Large forest fires on two former military training grounds in Germany: “Fire activates old ammunition, situation is dramatic” | Abroad

The fires broke out in quick succession. At the town of Lübtheen, the fire is now raging on an area of ​​100 hectares. At Hagenow, 50 kilometers to the north, about 35 hectares are on fire. Hundreds of firefighters have been deployed to extinguish the fires. The television channel ‘NDR’ reports that they will receive reinforcements from the army on Tuesday morning, which will make an armored bulldozer available, among other things. Fire helicopters are also deployed.

The fire at Lübtheen threatens the village of Volzrade. The flames have approached the village to a distance of 800 meters and the extinguishing efforts are primarily aimed at preserving the village, the regional authorities say. They call the situation “dramatic”. The approximately 160 inhabitants have been evacuated as a precaution.

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In 2019, a large fire also raged on the training ground at Lübtheen. Then nearly 1,000 hectares of forest went up in flames. It was the largest wildfire in the history of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. Even then, the presence of old ammunition caused major problems. In addition, the fire brigade was faced with a shortage of fire extinguishing water. Fifteen additional wells have since been constructed in the area.

However, authorities say conditions are now more difficult than in 2019. Some of the munitions on the site date from World War II and are buried. Because there is a lot of dead wood in the area that feeds the flames, the heat of the fire is now greater than at the time. As a result, it penetrates deeper into the soil and can thus detonate more ammunition.