Firefighters engaged in a fierce battle against a massive wildfire that ravaged a nature reserve in eastern Belgium and another on a Greek island near Athens, resulting in two fatalities on Sunday due to the scorching hot and dry conditions that have been fueling fires in various parts of Europe.
The wildfire in eastern Belgium consumed around 30 square kilometers in the High Fens (Hautes Fagnes), marking one of the most severe wildfires the country has witnessed recently. Approximately 600 residents in the nearby towns of Waimes and Bütgenbach in Liège province, close to the German border, were instructed to evacuate as winds changed direction, spreading smoke throughout the region. Authorities urged tourists to vacate the area, while a nearby gymnasium was prepared to accommodate evacuees.
Hervé Jamar, the provincial governor of Liège, mentioned in a statement on Sunday that over 250 emergency responders, including more than 100 Belgian and German firefighters, as well as police, military personnel, and civil protection teams, were deployed to combat the blaze. Additionally, firefighting helicopters operated by Belgium’s federal police and the Netherlands provided assistance.
In Greece, the coast guard reported that an elderly couple tragically lost their lives outside their residence on the island of Salamina, located west of Athens, near the fire’s origin. Over 500 individuals were rescued from the island. The fire erupted during Greece’s peak summer holiday weekend around the Assumption holiday on August 15, a time when many residents of Athens travel to neighboring islands like Salamina, easily accessible from the capital’s main port of Piraeus. Several houses were damaged, and five individuals were taken to a healthcare facility as reported locally.
A significant number of firefighters, aircraft, helicopters, volunteer squads, and municipal water tankers were deployed to contain the blazes. Coast guard and firefighting vessels were dispatched to the island, with preparations made for potential sea evacuations from endangered coastal regions. Salamina was under a high wildfire risk alert on Sunday, with the cause of the fires remaining unknown.
The ongoing wildfire in Belgium has exceeded a 2011 blaze that engulfed nearly 14 square kilometers in the same vicinity, previously holding the record as the country’s largest wildfire according to data from the European Forest Fire Information System. Nicolas Yernaux, a spokesperson for the Public Service of Wallonia, remarked that the current conditions were notably worse due to extremely dry soil.
René Dahmen, the chief engineer at the Department of Nature and Forests, mentioned that the fire was still spreading on Sunday in a challenging-to-reach area for the firefighting teams. Interior Minister Bernard Quintin confirmed that efforts successfully prevented the blaze from advancing westward towards the German town of Monschau. Local authorities in Germany warned that the fire was approximately 1.5 kilometers away from the border.
Belgium activated the European Union’s civil protection mechanism to receive aid from other countries. Sweden dispatched two water-bombing aircraft, while three helicopters – two from the Netherlands and one from the Czech Republic – were also mobilized. The wildfires come after weeks of exceedingly hot and dry weather, with the mix of heathland and peat bogs in the High Fens complicating containment efforts.
In France, firefighters managed to control a wildfire in a pine forest in the Landes region, estimating the burned area at 17 square kilometers with around 650 evacuees. In the United Kingdom, emergency crews battled 14 wildfires in South Wales with military support, emphasizing the persistent high wildfire risk despite the easing heat wave. Germany made significant progress against a wildfire in the Hürtgen Forest, allowing evacuated residents to return home as crews established a clear cordon to prevent further spread of the fire.