Wildfires scorch Belgium's High Fens and Greek island, killing two
A massive blaze in Belgium's High Fens nature reserve and a fast-moving fire on Greece's Salamina island have prompted large emergency responses, with two fatalities reported on the Greek island.
Firefighters are battling a massive wildfire that has engulfed about 12 square miles of the High Fens nature reserve in eastern Belgium, one of the country’s largest in recent years. Around 600 residents of the nearby Waimes and Bütgenbach municipalities were ordered to evacuate on Saturday as shifting winds spread smoke, and a local gymnasium was opened as a shelter. Liège provincial governor Hervé Jamar said more than 250 emergency personnel, including over 100 Belgian and German firefighters, police, military officers and civil protection staff, are involved, with assistance from Belgian federal police helicopters and Dutch aircraft.
In Greece, two people were found dead after a wildfire broke out on the island of Salamina, west of Athens. The victims were recovered in the village of Peristeria, where strong winds accelerated the blaze. Fire Brig. Gen. Vasileios Vathrakogiannis said near-gale winds allowed the fire to reach residential areas within seven minutes. About 260 firefighters, 15 ground teams, 10 aircraft and eight helicopters are responding, while coast guard vessels are evacuating beachgoers.
The Belgian fire has surpassed a 2011 blaze that burned 5.5 square miles in the same area. Nicolas Yernaux, spokesperson for the Public Service of Wallonia, noted the current fire is deeper due to very dry soil. René Dahmen, chief engineer of the Department of Nature and Forest, said the fire continues to spread on the eastern flank, prioritising protection of a municipal forest. Interior Minister Bernard Quintin reported that firefighters have prevented the fire from moving toward the west and the German town of Monschau, which lies less than a mile from the border.
Belgium activated the European Union’s civil protection mechanism, prompting assistance from several member states. EU crisis-management commissioner Hadja Lahbib said Sweden sent two water-bombing aircraft, while the Netherlands and the Czech Republic provided three helicopters. Farmers from Belgium and Germany also supplied water from a nearby lake to aid the effort.
The blaze follows weeks of unusually hot, dry weather across Europe. In France, a wildfire in the Landes region has burned about 6.5 square miles, prompting the evacuation of roughly 650 people. The United Kingdom reported 14 wildfires in South Wales, with military support, and central England saw more than a dozen homes damaged as temperatures reached 38.1 °C. In Germany, firefighters have contained a fire in the Hürtgen Forest, allowing around 2,000 evacuated residents to return home.