The forest fires in eastern Germany are still not under control

The forest fires that broke out in eastern Germany earlier this week are still not under control. The Gohrischheide area on the border between Saxony and Brandenburg, as well as the Saalfelder Höhe in Thuringia, are particularly affected. On Friday morning, more than 1,000 firefighters and fire engines were deployed in both areas.

In Thuringia, the situation has eased somewhat, according to a district spokesperson. However, even though the fire hasn't spread across the area, it isn't yet under control. Emergency services from Bavaria arrived overnight to assist with firefighting efforts. They are expected to remain there until Sunday, as there is a risk that the fires will spread further over the weekend due to unfavorable winds and dry conditions. The fire on the Saalfelder Höhe is considered the largest forest fire there in more than 30 years.

Firefighting efforts also continue in Gohrischheide. Changing winds are further fanning the flames there and accelerating their spread. Local firefighters estimated the area affected by the fire at 1,000 hectares on Thursday evening. Firefighting efforts in Gohrischheide are being made more difficult by the proximity to a former military training area.

Because the ammunition in the ground there repeatedly detonates, firefighters must maintain a safe distance during firefighting operations . This also applies to the firefighting helicopters of the Federal Police that are deployed there. Armored fire engines are now deployed in the area, reports Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk. Farmers are supporting the firefighters with extinguishing water. On Thursday, a disaster alert was issued for three communities in the area.

Brandenburg has also been affected by the forest fires. However, the situation there has calmed down because the wind has shifted toward Saxony. Nevertheless, farmers there had to harvest some of their fields early to prevent the fire from spreading to the dry rye or grain. The emergency harvests are causing financial losses for farmers because the grain can now only be used as animal feed.

In recent years, forest fires have repeatedly occurred in eastern Germany. They occur more frequently there than in western Germany. One reason for this is the more continental climate prevailing in eastern Germany. While the west is more frequently hit by Atlantic low pressure systems that bring rain, eastern Germany experiences higher temperatures and little precipitation, especially in summer.

Combined with the sandy soils that dominate the landscape, especially in Brandenburg and Saxony, and which retain water poorly, vegetation in the east suffers from drought more frequently than that in the west. This makes it vulnerable to fires, which can spread rapidly on the parched soils.

Added to this is a legacy from the GDR era. For economic reasons, socialist landscape planners reforested the forests primarily with fast-growing conifers. This resulted in large-scale pine monocultures, which are particularly prone to fire because pine trees contain highly flammable resin.

The sometimes poor technical equipment in many eastern regions makes firefighting difficult. The Saxon State Fire Brigade Association, for example, complains that there is often a lack of tank fire engines, firefighting robots for munitions-contaminated areas, and helicopters. These are particularly important because they can be used more flexibly than fire engines to rescue people and transport fire pumps to fires.

Although geographical and forestry conditions, combined with heat and drought, promote the outbreak of forest fires in eastern Germany, they are not the cause of the fires. Rather, they are caused by human carelessness, such as discarding burning cigarettes, and deliberate arson.

According to forest fire statistics from the Federal Agricultural Information Center, 27 percent of fires in Germany last year were due to negligent behavior by campers and forest visitors. Around 18 percent were arson-related. In 42 percent of the fires, however, the exact cause remained unknown. Natural causes such as lightning strikes played only a minor role.