Firefighters were engaged in combatting a massive wildfire that ravaged a nature reserve in eastern Belgium and another on a Greek island near Athens, resulting in two fatalities on Sunday due to hot and dry conditions escalating fires across certain parts of Europe.
In eastern Belgium, a fire consumed approximately 30 square kilometers in the High Fens (Hautes Fagnes), a significant nature reserve, marking one of the most severe wildfires the country has witnessed recently. Around 600 residents in the nearby towns of Waimes and Bütgenbach in Liège province, close to the German border, were instructed to evacuate on Saturday as winds changed direction and smoke enveloped the vicinity. Authorities also recommended tourists to depart, and a nearby gymnasium was made available to accommodate evacuees.
Hervé Jamar, the provincial governor of Liège, reported on Sunday that more than 250 emergency responders were dispatched, including over 100 Belgian and German firefighters, along with police, military personnel, and civil protection staff. Firefighting helicopters operated by Belgium’s federal police and the Netherlands also contributed to the efforts.
In Greece, the coast guard stated that an elderly couple lost their lives outside their residence on the island of Salamina, situated west of Athens, close to where the fire originated. Over 500 individuals have been rescued from the island. The fire erupted during Greece’s peak summer holiday weekend around the Aug. 15 Assumption holiday, a time when many Athenians venture to neighboring islands like Salamina, easily accessible from the main port of Piraeus in the capital.
Houses suffered damage, and reports indicate that five individuals were taken to a health clinic. Approximately 192 firefighters, 14 aircraft and helicopters, volunteer teams, and municipal water tankers were deployed to contain the blazes. Coast guard and firefighting vessels were dispatched to the island, with arrangements made for potential sea evacuations from threatened coastal areas. Salamina was under a high wildfire risk alert on Sunday, and the cause of the fires remains unknown.
The ongoing wildfire in Belgium has surpassed a 2011 fire that burned nearly 14 square kilometers in the same region, 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 worse conditions this time, emphasizing the exceptionally dry soil as a crucial factor.
René Dahmen, chief engineer at the Department of Nature and Forests, mentioned that the fire was still spreading on Sunday in a challenging-to-access area for crews. Interior Minister Bernard Quintin commended firefighters for preventing the spread of the blaze towards the west and the German town of Monschau. Local authorities in Germany warned on Sunday that the fire was approximately 1.5 kilometers from the border.
Belgium activated the European Union’s civil protection mechanism to receive support from other countries. Hadja Lahbib, the EU’s commissioner overseeing crisis management, emphasized the collaborative effort, with Sweden sending two water-bombing aircraft, and helicopters from the Netherlands and the Czech Republic also being deployed. The fire outbreak follows weeks of unusually hot and dry weather, with the unique mix of heathland and peat bogs in the High Fens complicating firefighting efforts.
In France, firefighters tackling a wildfire in a pine forest in the southwestern Landes region reported no significant flare-ups overnight. The total burned area was estimated at 17 square kilometers, with approximately 650 evacuations conducted. This incident marked the third major wildfire in the vast pine forests of southwestern France this summer. Additionally, a massive wildfire in the neighboring Gironde department scorched about 420 square kilometers, prompting the evacuation of approximately 220,000 people.
Emergency crews in the United Kingdom were combatting 14 wildfires in South Wales with military support. Authorities cautioned about the persistent high wildfire risk due to drought conditions despite the easing heat wave. The UK witnessed fires destroying over a dozen homes in the West Midlands, with officials recording the hottest day of the year on Thursday, reaching temperatures of 38.1 degrees Celsius. Meanwhile, in Germany, firefighters made significant headway against a wildfire in the Hürtgen Forest, allowing around 2,000 evacuated residents of Gey to return home. Officials confirmed no active flames, with a cleared cordon established around the affected area to prevent further spread.