Firefighters worked through the night to fully surround Belgium’s largest wildfire in a century, but authorities said Wednesday the situation remains complicated as new flare-ups continue to erupt across the 3,000-hectare blaze in the High Fens nature reserve near the German border.
Crisis cell spokesman Tony Hosmans said the fire has been encircled and is no longer spreading east toward Germany, with the goal now to bring it fully under control with the help of water-dropping aircraft that resumed operations after weather improved.
Evacuation Orders Lifted
Authorities lifted the last remaining evacuation orders Wednesday. Residents of the Belgian hamlet of Sourbrodt were given the all-clear to return home, and the German town of Monschau posted a notice telling residents near the border it was safe to go back. No homes have been damaged, but hundreds of people had been displaced since the fire broke out Friday in reasons still unknown.
The blaze grew rapidly over the weekend, doubling in size within 24 hours to reach approximately 3,000 hectares, or about half the size of Manhattan. It tore through fragile peatlands, pine forests, and hiking trails in the High Fens, a protected nature reserve in eastern Belgium that was last ravaged by massive fires during a similar period of heatwaves in 1911.
European Air Support Mobilised
Belgium activated the EU Civil Protection Mechanism on Saturday, triggering a multinational response. Belgian federal police helicopters and Dutch aircraft were the first to arrive, repeatedly collecting water from a nearby lake. Helicopters from the Czech Republic and Sweden joined the effort, while Germany and Norway also offered aerial support.
European Commissioner for preparedness and crisis management Hadja Lahbib confirmed additional countries were contributing to the response. Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever thanked European partners on social media for their assistance.
Burning Underground
Firefighters face a particular challenge in the High Fens terrain, where the fire is smouldering underground in deep peat soil. Hosmans warned that whenever crews disturb the ground, cut down a tree, or expose the soil, the fire can reignite. Hundreds of firefighters worked night and day to hack through the boggy terrain and close the fire’s eastern and northern flanks.
The High Fens wildfire is part of a broader pattern of devastating European wildfires this summer, driven by repeated heatwaves and drought conditions. Blazes have forced thousands to evacuate across Croatia, France, Germany, Greece, and Spain, with fires in Greece killing an elderly couple on the island of Salamis.
Sources: AFP; Politico EU; Euronews; RTE; European Commission
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