Wildfire in the Rax-Schneeberg Area: Major Operation Continues

A forest fire near Schwarzau im Gebirge in the Rax-Schneeberg area (Neunkirchen district) has led to a major firefighting operation throughout the weekend. On Sunday afternoon, the fire was brought under control and confined to an area of around eight hectares, said district fire commander Josef Huber to the APA. Up to 340 firefighters and five firefighting helicopters were deployed on Saturday, while on Sunday there were still 320 and three helicopters.

The fire broke out on Saturday morning in the municipal area of Schwarzau im Gebirge. According to the fire department, the cause of the fire was likely a burning vehicle. Due to the strong wind, the flames spread to a nearby forest area and quickly expanded. In addition to the surrounding fire departments from the district, two units of the disaster relief service, the air service, and the special forest fire service of the state fire command were also alerted.

Spread Temporarily Stopped, But No "Fire Out" Yet

The omnipresent dryness, strong wind, and the steep terrain mostly covered with pines made the firefighting efforts difficult and brought some firefighters to the brink of exhaustion, reported operations manager Josef Huber. "The emergency forces often had to crawl on all fours to the individual smoldering nests, and that with equipment weighing up to 18 kilos," Huber described the situation. Nevertheless, apart from a few minor injuries, everyone has returned unscathed from the operation so far.

Currently, the task is to locate and extinguish the remaining smoldering nests. According to Huber, there is no end to the operation in sight yet. A fire watch will be set up on the night of Monday, as was done the previous night. The firefighting efforts are expected to continue on Monday, albeit with slightly reduced personnel compared to the weekend.

Mikl-Leitner Thanks Emergency Services

Governor Johanna Mikl-Leitner (ÖVP) expressed her appreciation to the emergency services. "My thanks go to the hundreds of comrades who are fighting the forest fire in the Rax area under extremely difficult conditions this weekend. The operation reminds us of the devastating forest fire in Hirschwang in 2021 and how important it is for us to behave cautiously in our forests," she wrote in a statement on Sunday.

In the district, a devastating forest fire had already challenged the emergency services for days several years ago: On October 25, 2021, a fire started on the so-called Mittagsteig in Hirschwang in the market town of Reichenau an der Rax and spread extremely quickly - from five to about 115 hectares within ten hours. According to fire department reports, one of the most complex firefighting operations in the area of forest fire fighting in recent decades developed in steep and rocky terrain. Almost 9,000 helpers were on site in total. It was not until November 6, 2021, that the fire was declared extinguished. Arson was suspected, but a perpetrator has not been identified to this day.

Forest Fire Regulations in Effect

Due to ongoing dryness, there have been smaller grass and forest fires in numerous regions of Austria over the weekend. In several districts, forest fire regulations, which govern behavior in the forest during dry conditions, are already coming into effect, several weeks earlier than in previous years. An urgent piece of advice from the fire department is also: If a fire starts, immediately alert the fire department before attempting to extinguish it yourself.

(APA/Red)

This article has been automatically translated, read the original article here.