Firefighters grappled with a massive wildfire that ravaged a nature reserve in eastern Belgium and another on a Greek island near Athens, where two individuals lost their lives on Sunday due to hot and dry conditions stoking fires across parts of Europe.
In eastern Belgium, a blaze consumed approximately 30 square kilometers in the High Fens, a significant nature reserve, marking one of the nation’s most severe wildfires in recent memory. Around 600 residents in the neighboring municipalities of Waimes and Bütgenbach, situated in Liège province near the German border, were instructed to evacuate on Saturday as winds changed direction, spreading smoke throughout the area. Authorities also recommended that tourists vacate the region, while a nearby gymnasium was designated to accommodate evacuees.
Hervé Jamar, the provincial governor of Liège, announced on Sunday that over 250 emergency responders were mobilized, including more than 100 Belgian and German firefighters, as well as police, military personnel, and civil protection teams. Belgium’s federal police and Dutch firefighting helicopters were also engaged in the firefighting efforts.
In Greece, the coast guard reported the tragic deaths of an elderly couple outside their residence on the island of Salamina, located west of Athens, close to where the fire ignited. Over 500 individuals were evacuated from the island. The fire erupted during Greece’s peak summer holiday season around the Assumption holiday on August 15, drawing many Athenians to nearby islands like Salamina, easily accessible from Piraeus, the capital’s main port. Reports indicate damage to homes and five people being transported to a health facility.
Approximately 192 firefighters, 14 aircraft and helicopters, volunteer teams, and municipal water trucks were deployed to contain the blazes. Coast guard and firefighting vessels were dispatched to Salamina, with contingency plans in place for potential sea evacuations from imperiled coastal zones. Salamina was under a heightened wildfire risk alert on Sunday, with the cause of the fires remaining unknown.
The ongoing blaze in Belgium has surpassed a 2011 fire that scorched nearly 14 square kilometers in the same area, previously the country’s largest recorded wildfire, according to data from the European Forest Fire Information System. Nicolas Yernaux, a spokesperson for the Public Service of Wallonia, highlighted the significantly adverse conditions this time, attributing the severity to exceptionally dry soil.
René Dahmen, the chief engineer at the Department of Nature and Forests, indicated on Sunday that the fire was still spreading in a challenging-to-access area. Interior Minister Bernard Quintin confirmed that firefighters successfully thwarted the blaze from advancing westward toward the German town of Monschau. Local authorities in Germany cautioned that the fire was approximately 1.5 kilometers from the border.
Belgium invoked the European Union’s civil protection mechanism to receive aid from other nations. Hadja Lahbib, the EU’s crisis management commissioner, reassured that assistance was forthcoming, with Sweden dispatching two water-bombing aircraft and three helicopters from the Netherlands and the Czech Republic also en route.
The fire outbreaks in Europe come after a prolonged period of abnormal heat and arid conditions. The unique terrain of the High Fens, characterized by heathland and peat bogs, has complicated firefighting efforts. Belgium experienced another bout of intense heat recently, with temperatures reaching around 37 degrees Celsius in parts of the country.
In France, firefighters contending with a wildfire in a pine forest in the Landes region reported no significant flare-ups overnight. The total area charred was estimated at 17 square kilometers, prompting the evacuation of approximately 650 individuals. It marked the third major wildfire in the expansive pine forests of southwestern France this summer. Additionally, a massive blaze in the adjacent Gironde department, engulfing about 420 square kilometers, necessitated the evacuation of roughly 220,000 people as it crept toward the Atlantic coast and Bordeaux.
Emergency crews in the United Kingdom tackled 14 wildfires in South Wales with military support. Authorities cautioned that despite the easing heat wave, persistent drought conditions maintained a heightened wildfire risk. Notably, several homes were destroyed in the West Midlands this week, coinciding with the hottest day of the year, with temperatures soaring to 38.1 degrees Celsius on Thursday.
In Germany, progress was made against a wildfire in the Hürtgen Forest, enabling approximately 2,000 evacuated residents of Gey to return home on Saturday. By Sunday, no active flames were reported, and crews had established a protective perimeter to contain any potential spread of the fire.