Because of a forest fire, three places on the Brandenburg-Saxon border have to be evacuated. The fire initially seemed under control in the morning – but now it has spread to 300 to 400 hectares.
The fire brigade continues to fight against a forest fire on the Saxon border, near the town of Mühlberg (Elbe-Elster district). This was announced by the Lausitz control center on Friday.
Because of the fire, three towns had to be evacuated on Friday: the districts of Kosilenzien and Kröbeln in Bad Liebenwerda and on the Saxon side of the town of Nieska (district of Gröditz in the district of Meissen).
There is now one official danger announcement for the region. Residents should therefore prepare for an evacuation, the emergency call should only be dialed in absolute emergencies. In addition, windows and doors should remain closed and air conditioning systems should be switched off.
The forest fire now has a size of 300 to 400 hectares, of which 50 to 100 hectares are on the Brandenburg side, as forest fire protection officer Raimund Engel told rbb. According to Engel, more precise information is currently not possible due to the heavy smoke development. In addition, strong winds fanned the fire again and again, according to the Lausitz control center, and there was a “dynamic” fire development.
In the late afternoon, rain set in at the scene of the fire, as reported by rbb reporters. It is still unclear to what extent the precipitation will affect the fire. More rain is forecast for overnight.
According to the Elbe-Elster district fire chief, Steffen Ludewig, the extinguishing work is made more difficult by the fact that the area on fire in Saxony, the Gohrischheide, is partly an area contaminated with explosive ordnance. Ever-changing winds continued to fuel the fires. “We’re trying to organize and stabilize the situation,” said Ludewig.
The fire had already developed on the Saxon side on Thursday evening. After the fire seemed under control in the morning, it flared up again in the morning and also spread to Brandenburg.
By Friday morning, six fire engines from the Elbe-Elster district were already in action. According to the control center, there are currently between 120 and 150 firefighters from southern Brandenburg on duty. According to the rescue control center in Dresden, there are currently 140 emergency services from the Saxon fire brigades.
According to the fire brigade, not only forest areas are affected, but also grain fields and railway tracks.
Broadcast: rbb24 Brandenburg Aktuell, June 24th, 2022, 7:30 p.m