Forest fires in Saxon Switzerland: embers worry firefighters;  Lambrecht is coming

Forest fires in Bohemian Switzerland and Saxon Switzerland – the most important things in a nutshell

7.45 am: Czechs concerned about weather forecast

Over the weekend, it rained heavily in parts of the Czech Republic – but not in the bohemian region of Switzerland. Emergency services are concerned about the prospects for the next few days. Although it is said that the start of the week was accompanied by few showers, temperatures are expected to rise above 30 degrees again in the coming days. Meteorologists don’t expect more pronounced rain until Friday.

7.20 a.m.: A new heater has been discovered after a drone flight

Embers are due to be contained in the ground on Monday in Großer Winterberg and in the Zschand region, according to a press spokesman for the local office of the East Swiss Saxon Krem Mountains, Thomas Kunz. The floor flips over and a foam rug spreads in the air. In this way baffles are formed so that the fire does not spread into the humus layer.

According to Koons, another fire spot was discovered at an altitude of 20 meters during a drone flight on Sunday evening. This will run with firefighting helicopters from this morning.

There are about 200 firefighters with 50 vehicles on site. According to Koons, another 150 will be added in the morning, and about 550 people will be on duty during the day. The Bundeswehr supports firefighting.

6.50 a.m.: Bohemian Switzerland National Park wants to quickly launch closed hiking trails

Since Saturday, there has been a ban on entering the forest in parts of the Bohemian Fire District. Such as the national park management on their management Homepage He declares that the measure must be lifted as soon as the fire is extinguished and the safety of the tourist infrastructure is ensured.

The highway from Děčín to Hřensko is closed to traffic.

The following communities and places are closed:

  • Herrskretschen (Hřensko),
  • Rainwiese (Border Meadow),
  • Bede Clammen, Das Prebechtor (Presbyterian Gate),
  • Stimmersdorf (Mezná),
  • Schauenstein (Šaunštejn),
  • Hinterdittersbach (Zadní Jetřichovice) und die Böhmerstraße (Bohemian Road),
  • Die Grundmühle (Dolsky Mill),
  • die Aussicht auf die Kamnitz
  • Hohenleipa (Tall Linden),
  • Outskirts of the municipality of Jünesdorf (Janov).

The following places are available for tourists

  • The areas around Dittersbach (Jetřichovice) with popular views (Mariina skála), Wilhelminenwand (or Rudolfstein), Balzhütte (Na Tokáni), Paulinengrund (and Rosenberg (“Růženka” watchtower). These areas can only be visited on other hiking trails Places outside this area are freely accessible without restrictions.
  • Other parts of the national park and tourist area of ​​bohemian Switzerland are accessible and safe, but at the same time there are no lifeguards. The following locations are available to visitors: Tissa (Tissa), Elland (Ostroff), Schneeberg (Sennik), near Dicene (Din), Windsch Kamenitz (Srpska Kamenice), near Czesca Kamenice (Czesca Kamenis), Schönlund (Krásná Lípa) and Daubitz ( Doubice), Wolfsberg (Vlčí hora) and the entire head of Śluknov including the Lusatian Mountains.

6.05 am: Federal Defense Minister Lambrecht arrives in the bushfire area

This afternoon, Federal Minister of Defense Christine Lambrecht visited the forest fire zone in Saxon Switzerland. According to the State Chancellery in Dresden, the SPD politician wants to get an idea of ​​the situation – along with Saxon Prime Minister Michael Kretschmer (CDU) and German General Carsten Breuer. The visit begins at the operations center of the Bad Schandau fire brigade. A helicopter is also on the program for the minister and the prime minister.

Federal Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht is coming to Saxony today.

Federal Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht is coming to Saxony today.
© tasr

Monday, 5:08 a.m.: Embers are a concern for firefighters

In the case of forest fires in Saxon Switzerland, the authorities see no reason to give all the clarity. The fire was brought to a standstill about a week after it broke out, but new embers continue to appear, said Thomas Kunz, a spokesman for the Swiss province of Saxony – the eastern Krem Mountains, Thomas Kunz. “We can see the restricted area.”

In a statement issued by the region late Sunday evening, it was said that the possibility of easing the situation would depend mainly on the weather: “Heavy rain over several days can significantly alleviate the fire and effectively support the work of the emergency services.” In the current situation, The fire brigades assumed that intensive action would be taken at least until the middle of the week. Rain is expected on Monday – but it wasn’t clear how productive it would be.

According to the spokesman, 560 soldiers were deployed on the Czech border on Sunday, in addition to 12 helicopters and a water cannon from the Bavarian police.

According to the authorities, the area affected by the fires is stable between 140 and 150 hectares – approximately the size of Helgoland. Koons said emergency services were concerned that the fire had penetrated the humus layer. “The fire is spreading under the feet of the firefighters.” To prevent further spread, baffles will be erected in the ground and filled with special foam. This will cool the earth.

This is what we reported on Sunday:

6.10 pm: Saxony’s Interior Minister on the MDR: “We’re not done yet.”

“We’re not done yet,” Saxony Interior Minister Armin Schuster (CDU) said in an interview with MDR Sachsenspiegel about the state of firefighting in Saxony Switzerland. The situation was “stable but at the highest level of strength”.

It’s “a whole new challenge in this dimension to be able to fight wildfires.” Saxony should invest additionally. “The concepts are there. More materials are needed – we will have to work with an additional investment of 20-30 million euros for large tank fire-fighting trains, for special units in the air and on the ground.” In addition to the matter of materials, Schuster wants to put early bushfire detection to the test: “Are we good enough, are we digital enough?” Schuster also sees a need to catch up when it comes to educating the population: “Does everyone really know? – I don’t think so.”

You can watch the program here on MDR

5.10 p.m.: Nothing works without the Schandauer Women’s Fire

People in and around Schandau know what wildfires mean, even if the current proportions are unimaginable. And you know the firefighters trying to put it out for days. There is also the Schandauer Fire Girls, who organize and keep the outback so that the forest firefighters can focus on putting out the fire. Report on Shandao firefighters

Photo: Heike Sapel

Photo: Heike Sapel
© Heike Sapel

2.30 pm: No rain expected today

While it’s been raining in the eastern Czech Republic since morning – there’s even a risk of small flooding locally, no rain is expected in bohemian Switzerland today. For emergency services, this means that they must continue to fight fires with all the resources they can.

12.40 pm: Foam carpets to prevent the spread of fire

The situation with forest fires in Saxon Switzerland remains tense. In light of the rising temperatures, fire sites are suspected of igniting again, a spokesman for the Saxon Switzerland and Eastern European office, Thomas Kunz, said Sunday morning. Although there is no “big fire” during the night, it is assumed that the fires will burn again during the day. After the firefighting helicopters finished their work on Saturday night, drones were used for surveillance.

According to Kunz, as expected, the fire had now penetrated the humus layer of the earth to a depth of half a meter and spread there. Therefore, attempts are now being made to erect barriers on forest paths, for example. “To do this, the earth is torn up and a mixture of water and a so-called wetting agent is introduced.” The resulting foam can better penetrate the soil. This is said to create a bar to contain the fire and deprive him of food.

According to Kunz, Sachsenforst employees are in the process of scavenging dead wood from adjacent forest areas. In addition, rangers from the Saxon Switzerland National Park are on site to support the emergency services with their local knowledge. “360 people were deployed in the morning, and the number will rise to 500 during the day,” he added. You are dealing with a very dynamic fire situation, which makes the situation very complex. 14 firefighting helicopters and two fire investigation helicopters are on site.

11.50 a.m.: Mayor of Chandu: ‘It will be a hard, long and rocky road’

Thomas Konak had been on vacation since July 25, he was going to Italy on Friday – and he stayed there like many. And like anyone who’s been using it continuously for a week now, Mayor Schandau can be seen. What are his tasks now, what is important now and in the future and how Bad Schandau can stand on its own two feet.

10.40 a.m.: Vysoká Lípa residents can return

On the Czech side, the firefighters were able to advance in the fight against the fire so far until the evacuation of Vysuki Lipa (Hohenleiba) ended and people could return to their homes, He tweeted the Usti District Fire and Rescue Service. It remains inaccessible to other evacuated villages.

10.15 am: Federal Police firefighting helicopters back in operation:

Four Federal Police firefighting helicopters returned to work on Sunday. Fire extinguisher tanks (“Bambi Buckets”) can hold up to 2000 liters of water.

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