Forest fires: evacuation of another village possible | NDR.de – News

Around 100 hectares of forest are still affected by the fire on the former military training area near Lübtheen. The situation has not changed since the morning, said the district administrator of Ludwigslust-Parchim, Stefan Sternberg (SPD), in the afternoon. Now it is important that the fire does not jump over one of the wide protective lanes. Should it reach a critical point between the villages of Volzrade and Trebs, Trebs would also have to be evacuated, the district administrator said. The people from Volzrade had to leave their homes on Monday evening. The fire is only 500 meters away from the village. According to Sternberg, between Volzrade and Trebs the firefighters can only act from the air with a fire-fighting helicopter. That is why the situation there is more tense than in other places.

Situation in Hagenow more stable than in Lübtheen

The fire in the forest fire area near Hagenow had expanded from 35 to 45 hectares overnight. Nevertheless, the operations management assesses the situation at Hagenow as more stable than at Lübtheen, since there is much less deadwood in the Viezer Heide to feed the fire. Since midday, a Bundeswehr armored recovery vehicle has been cutting wide aisles around the burning area. Sternberg assumes that this work can be completed in the evening. In both fire areas, detonations of old ammunition lying in the ground could be heard again and again. Due to the risk of explosion, the fire brigade cannot extinguish the fire in the area. They confine themselves to keeping the aisles moist with as much water as possible.

State government praises fire service

During a visit to Lübtheen, Prime Minister Manuela Schwesig (SPD) said it was reassuring to see how everything went hand in hand. The fire was more complicated, but the technical equipment was better than in 2019. She thanked the fire brigades for responding so quickly – that was also a consequence of the major fire four years ago. Arson is not assumed. On Tuesday morning, the state parliament of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania also recognized the efforts of the fire brigades and helpers. “What the men and women are doing there deserves our utmost respect,” said State President Birgit Hesse (SPD) to applause from the MPs. She also expressed the sympathy of the parliamentarians to the residents of the places threatened by the fires.

Infrastructure improved since last fire

After the devastating forest fire in 2019 in the Lübtheen region, aisles were cut in the forest there. The sand strips without plants are intended to prevent the fire from spreading. In addition, numerous deep wells were drilled and so-called circular sprinklers were purchased, which are now in use.

Deadwood provides fuel for flames

District Administrator Sternberg had declared a disaster for Lübtheen on Monday evening. The situation is different than four years ago, when there had been a fire in the same place for weeks. Compared to the devastating fire in 2019, the fire near Lübtheen is heating up even deeper soil layers this time, according to operations manager Stefan Geier from the Ludwigslust-Parchim district fire brigade association. That’s why ammunition explodes that wasn’t triggered back then. According to Geier, an ammunition recovery operation should begin in the affected areas in the coming week – but the fire preempted the evacuation. In 2019, the largest forest fire in the history of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania raged on almost 1,000 hectares on the former military training area near Lübtheen.

Fire in Crivitz extinguished after three hours

A fire also broke out in Crivitz on Monday around 6 p.m. near the Waldschlösschen. According to the fire department, there was a fire in around one hectare of forest. The six fire departments deployed were able to fight the fire quickly. The operation ended around 9 p.m.

Further information

In Volzrade, 160 residents had to leave their homes. The situation is also tense at Hagenow. more