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Fire hose in a forest in Treuenbrietzen
Photo: Annette Riedl / dpa
The devastating forest fires in Brandenburg near Beelitz and Treuenbrietzen have been extinguished - now the fire brigade has to keep the embers in the forest areas under control.
These sit up to 70 centimeters deep in the ground and could stay there for weeks, said the spokeswoman for the Potsdam Mittelmark district, Andrea Metzler.
The fire could be rekindled in dry and windy conditions, so fire guards continued to keep a close eye on the situation.
On Monday, 230 firefighters had watered the fire areas.
These should also remain overnight, said Metzler.
Temperatures should rise again on Tuesday.
The mayor of the city of Beelitz, Bernhard Knuth, announced late Monday evening that the fire was still under control.
At the weekend, two large forest areas in the Potsdam-Mittelmark district, which are only about 20 kilometers apart, burned.
Huge plumes of smoke hung over the area.
With changing winds, the fires spread rapidly.
Around 200 hectares of forest burned in each of the two forest areas – an area the size of around 300 football pitches.
Heavy rain began on Monday, and the fires were then largely extinguished.
Hundreds of residents who had been taken to safety as a precaution were able to return to their homes in the morning.
Up to 1,400 rescue workers were deployed to put out the fire.
The Bundeswehr and the Federal Police supported the work with fire-fighting helicopters.
jpz/dpa
