The forest fire in the Saxon Switzerland National Park has spread. A disaster alarm had been triggered for Bad Schandau, said a spokesman for the district office of the Saxon Switzerland-Eastern Ore Mountains on Tuesday morning. Accordingly, the number of deployment sites around the Großer Winterberg has increased from three to five.
The spokesman was unable to provide any information on the exact area that was on fire in the impassable, rocky area. Tourists should avoid the rear Saxon Switzerland.
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The forces had withdrawn for their own protection at night. Active firefighting has been going on since Tuesday morning at 6 a.m. with fresh firefighters. There are currently 250 firefighters and federal and state police forces on duty.
Two water cannons, each with a capacity of 10,000 liters, and two helicopters are also used to fight the fire. The water supply comes from the Elbe, for example.
In the meantime, the situation in the Czech Republic is deteriorating dramatically. Numerous residents of the municipality of Hrensko, which is considered the gateway to the national park, had to leave their homes on Tuesday morning. This was announced by a spokesman for the Czech fire brigade. All buildings on the right bank of the Kamnitz, which flows into the Elbe there, are affected.
Several buildings caught fire in the town of Mezna. The extinguishing work was resumed in the morning after a night-time interruption. The emergency services also evacuated a children’s holiday camp with around 100 participants from Germany. The children and their carers were handed over to local helpers at the border to Germany.
More than 150 firefighters are on site to fight the blaze. They are supported by police and army helicopters.
The forest fire broke out on Sunday in an area originally measuring around seven hectares. He is now threatening the Prebischtor with the excursion restaurant “Falcon’s Nest”. The rock formation is considered the landmark of the national park.
On Tuesday, the smoke could still be smelled in Prague, around 90 kilometers away, and beyond. Many concerned citizens called the fire department. The authorities appealed to the public not to block the emergency lines. Interior Minister Vit Rakusan announced that he would seek help from abroad.
The forest fire that broke out in the Bohemian Switzerland National Park in the Czech Republic spread to the Saxon Switzerland National Park on Monday. The fire spread at great speed from the Prebischtor area, the responsible district office in Pirna announced on Monday evening.
For the community of Sebnitz and Bad Schandau, the district office had initially triggered a disaster warning. On Monday evening there were three larger deployment sites at the Großer Winterberg restaurant, at the Kipphorn and at the Kleiner Winterberg.
According to the district office, the operation was difficult because the area is inaccessible and there was a strong wind. According to the German weather service, wind peaks of up to 36 kilometers per hour were expected for the night.
