Forest fires break out near Berlin, hundreds forced to evacuate

[Borealis]

https://www.dw.com/en/forest-fires-break-out-near-berlin-hundreds-forced-to-evacuate/a-45203042?maca=en-rss-en-ger-1023-xml-atom

More than 300 firefighters scrambled to fight a violent blaze outside of Berlin on Thursday, forcing the complete evacuation of the villages of Frohnsdorf, Klausdorf and Tiefenbrunnen.

Locals were ordered through loudspeaker announcements to leave their homes and take only their most important possessions, such as identification papers and medicines.

Most of the 540 villagers stayed with relatives, officials said, although several had to spend the night at a town hall in the nearby village of Treuenbrietzen. Several nearby roads and rail
lines remained closed overnight into Friday.

Christian Stein, a local official for the district of Potsdam-Mittelmark, told reporters that Thursday's fires broke out in several places and had expanded to cover a total area of around
300 hectares. Rising plumes of smoke were reportedly visible from as far as 10 kilometers (around 6 miles) away.

Raimund Engel, the Brandenburg commissioner overseeing forest fires, said he was expecting major damage. The blaze had developed into a "full fire" that was no longer just burning
the ground but had also spread into the treetops, he added.

Authorities also warned that strong winds could fan ash and smoke from the villages all the way to the southern districts of Berlin. Brandenburg has endured a particularly hot summer
this year, and rainfall has been scarce for several months. Vast areas have dried up as a result, increasing the risk of fires.

Engel also warned emergency services could face even greater risks the longer that fires continued to rage. The blaze is located in an area laden with munitions, located between the
districts of Potsdam-Mittelmark and Teltow-Fläming. A regional control center for Brandenburg said there had already been multiple explosions. Undetonated World War II bombs are
frequently unearthed in Germany.

[fodderstompf]

In this moment, we are all German.

Good luck fellas.