Experts warn: There are catastrophic risks of vegetation fires

BERLIN / Münster (Northwest) – According to fire experts, the risk of massive plant fires is increasing in Germany and other European countries. In particular, rising temperatures, severe drought and strong winds are expected to exacerbate the situation in the coming days.

As the German Fire Brigade (DFV) and the Association for Strengthening German Fire Protection (vfdb) wrote in a joint press release, meteorologists had forecast temperatures of over 30°C and wind speeds of up to 6 strong. Parts of Germany for the next week.

Dr. confirms. Ulrich Cimolino, Chair of the Forest Fire Working Group at DFV and Plant Fire Expert at vfdb. “In that time, wildfires and droughts caused $3.9 billion in damage in Europe alone.” And the long-term forecast, which suggests that a critical weather event with high temperatures and severe drought should last until August, is especially tragic.

The fire brigade noted that despite rainfall in some areas, the soil is dry and the average temperature is currently higher than normal at the beginning of summer. “This initial situation will likely lead to large-scale plant fires in large parts of Europe and Germany, which will develop rapidly,” warns Simolino.

In Germany, the main danger is likely to be within a range of several hundred kilometers from the southwest to the northeast. This is where the temperatures are likely to be the highest, with some new winds (wind force 5).

Areas that are not severely affected by heat, especially mountains, are also at risk. Because of the cliffs, flames can spread quickly especially there. Even at night, temperatures will drop only slightly, while at the same time – according to current forecasts – gusty winds should be expected throughout the day.

According to Simolino, all partners in the operation must ensure that firefighting is done quickly, on a large scale and at the same time sustainably. “In this weather event, each ember will immediately cause the next fire, at the latest when the winds get stronger,” the expert warns. “In particular, post-extinguishing work should be carried out carefully and, if possible, with thermal imaging control, including from the air.”

DFV and vfdb Warnings and Recommendations

In a joint appeal, DFV President Karl-Heinz Pansey and VFDB President Dirk Aschenbrenner called for fire experts’ warnings and recommendations to be taken seriously:

1. Rauchen, offenes Feuer, Grillen etc. ist vom 1. März bis 31. Oktober in den Wäldern in ganz Deutschland (in einigen Ländern ganzjährig!) verboten, sondern auch in allen anderen Vegetationsbereichen zu unterlassen, insbesondere dann, wenn es dort. Please use paved areas with large enough floor space and non-combustible.

2. Any suspicion of fire should be reported immediately by calling 112. The sooner a fire is caught, the faster it can be combated with a good chance of success.

3. Be as specific as possible about the location of the fire. You can use known objects, crossroads or rescue points of forest rescue chain. If you have a mobile phone with a location function, you can also use this to transmit your location. Please note that under certain conditions, this may not be the exact location of the fire seen, for example, on the slope of the mountain opposite!

4 – The fire brigade should prepare themselves as follows, for example:
a) Control of additional load to fight plant fires.
b) Prepare appropriate light personal protective equipment and carry it with you also on other tasks.
c) Check the contacts of farmers and foresters with special machines necessary for operational support and their specific availability.
d) Examination and updating of water transport support (agriculture, construction yards, companies, etc.).
e) Units from the initial planning for supra-regional operations should update their composition (note the holiday season and their risk status!).
f) Discuss deployment tactics again, particularly addressing the dangers of fast-moving, wind-driven fires!
g) Liaise with supra-regional units – particularly those for the deployment of aircraft to be requested as part of administrative assistance – at an early stage through designated offices and request appropriate resources.
h) Monitor regional weather conditions and their development when preparing for a mission and during the mission.

5. Farmers and forest workers should
a) carry extinguishing options on the vehicle (eg fire extinguisher),
b) Inspect machines and their engines before and after work, for example to change dirty filters, defective hydraulic hoses, etc.,
c) Monitor their equipment and machinery while they are working and in case of problems (high temperatures, warnings, etc.)
d) Alert firefighters immediately if a fire is suspected,
e) Accompany larger or remote work areas, for example when working in the fields with a tractor with a farmer or in the forest or bush area with a barrel of water. In the event of a field fire, unaffected areas can be secured with protective tape and the fire can be extinguished more easily and quickly by firefighters, who are immediately alerted.

6. The Aircraft Support Units of the Authorities and Organizations with Security Missions (BOS) must verify availability, provide the highest possible level of visibility with aircraft and crews as of this coming weekend and be prepared to cover the parallel requirements of several locations.

7. The supporting entities or companies must equip their fleet. That is, fill the barrels with water, if necessary, prepare the necessary transitional pieces.

AK Waldbrand has issued the following technical recommendations via the DFV to support operations (download link):