Fire in the Grunewald forest in Berlin: after almost a week, operations control releases the Avus motorway

Created: 08/11/2022 04:59

By: Patrick Huljina

Several embers continue to blaze in Berlin's Grunewald.

After days of fire hazard, emergency services were able to release the Avus motorway again on Wednesday.

The news ticker.

• Danger from

  ammunition

  and

  ordnance

  still high: emergency services in Grunewald cool the explosive site.

• Fire

  in

  Grunewald

  : The situation is stable but still not under control.

• Sprengplatz

  in the middle of

  Berlin

  : Discussions about the location continue to gain momentum.

• This news ticker about the

  fire in the Grunewald forest in Berlin

  is updated regularly.

Update from August 10, 6:37 p.m .:

After almost a week of fire hazard, the blocking of the Autobahn 115 (Avus) in Berlin’s Grunewald was lifted on Wednesday evening.

The operations management decided to release the Avus and Havelchaussee again from 6 p.m., the Berlin fire brigade announced on Twitter.

The autobahn was closed last Thursday after a fire broke out at the police blast site in Berlin's Grunewald.

Berlin Grunewald: "Great goal to release the Avus on Wednesday"

Update from August 10, 11:50 a.m .:

Six days after a fire broke out at a blast site in Berlin’s Grunewald forest, the emergency services are hoping for significant progress in the extinguishing work.

The fire brigade therefore thought it conceivable on Wednesday that the blocking of the 115 motorway (Avus), which is about 500 meters from the blast site, could be lifted during the course of the day.

"Our big goal is to release the Avus on Wednesday," said a spokesman.

But that depends on the success of the extinguishing and cooling work at the blasting site.

Since the fire broke out in Grunewald last Thursday, the important autobahn has been closed for around eleven kilometers between the Zehlendorf junction and the Funkturm autobahn triangle.

Fire in Berlin's Grunewald: "Are not yet where we want to be"

Update from August 10, 8:07 a.m .:

When fighting a fire at a blast site in Berlin’s Grunewald, the emergency services are still a long way from the goal.

"Unfortunately, we are not yet where we want to be," said a spokesman for the Berlin fire department on Wednesday morning, six days after the fire broke out.

There is still a risk of ammunition or other ordnance exploding in the area, which is still quite hot.

Therefore, it has not been possible for the emergency services to penetrate there.

The day before, the fire brigade found that the forest south of the blast site was also heavily contaminated by ammunition that had been thrown around by the explosions.

Two helicopters were used to fight the fire for the first time in the evening.

According to the fire brigade, they are not available on Wednesday because they are used in forest fires in Saxony.

Grunewald: Can the Autobahn be released again?

In the morning, everyone involved at the scene wanted to reassess the situation, the spokesman said.

The question should once again be whether the 115 motorway (Avus), which is about 500 meters from the blast site, can be reopened.

Since the fire broke out in Grunewald, the important connection has been closed for around eleven kilometers between the Zehlendorf junction and the Funkturm motorway triangle.

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On the blasting site, where the police stored 30 tons of old grenades, ammunition and confiscated fireworks, there was a violent fire on Thursday night.

The cause is not yet known.

Numerous explosions could be heard.

Berlin Grunewald: Again fire and explosions in the restricted area

Update from August 9, 8:15 a.m .:

The situation on the blast site in Berlin’s Grunewald remains tense on Tuesday.

During a patrol on Tuesday night, smaller fires were again spotted on the edge of the restricted area, a spokesman for the fire brigade said in the morning.

A small explosion was also heard.

"It's not really calm inside yet," said the spokesman.

According to the fire brigade, the temperatures at the blasting site were below 60 degrees Celsius on Monday evening - the morning before, values ​​of 140 degrees had been registered.

Temperatures will be checked again on Tuesday morning.

If they stayed below 60 degrees permanently, it would be possible to reduce the lockdown, the spokesman said.

Then an approval of the Avus is also possible.

Grunwald: Fighting the fire will probably take several days

Update from August 8, 5:45 p.m .:

On the fifth day of the extinguishing efforts in Berlin’s Grunewald, a spokesman drew an interim conclusion on the evening of Monday, August 8th.

As a result, fighting the fire is expected to take many more days.

Partly 140 degrees Celsius prevailed on the blasting site, which raised fears of further explosions.

Attempts are currently being made to cool the area down to 60 degrees Celsius with a water-separating tank and extinguishing robots in order to enable the emergency services to enter the area in question safely.

However, the area is large, impassable, unclear and traversed by buildings and fences, so that this cooling is very difficult.

Even on the fifth day after a fire broke out in Berlin's Grunewald, there is no end in sight.

© picture alliance/dpa |

Fabian Sommer

In addition, there are still embers that the wind would flare up again in some places.

World War II bombs and numerous large cartridges were scattered by the explosions at the beginning of the fire - further detonations could injure people or be thrown onto the motorway, according to the fire brigade.

Whether it is still necessary to block the Avus motorway is checked several times a day in situation assessments, and there should be another assessment on Monday evening, it said.

A release of the highway was not expected.

It is only possible when the radius of the exclusion circle is reduced from 1000 to 500 meters.

Grunewald: Flock of sheep out of danger – animals had to stay in the restricted area for days during the fire

Update from August 8, 4:00 p.m.:

The fire in Berlin’s Grunewald has endangered a flock of sheep for days.

However, on Monday, August 8th, the fire brigade was able to give the all-clear.

"The sheep are safe!" read on Twitter.

Since the fire broke out on Thursday, August 4th, a few dozen sheep have been in the one kilometer cordon around the blast site.

According to the fire brigade, the shepherd had provided a water supply for two days, which gave the emergency services some time - for safety reasons they could not enter the site.

Individual firefighters and police officers supplied supplies with heavy equipment.

But now the herd has left the restricted area partly independently, partly with the support of helpers, according to the fire brigade.

Fire in Grunewald: Avus still closed, emergency services are cooling the area

Update from August 8, 12:35 p.m .:

Four days after the fire broke out in Berlin’s Grunewald, the A115 motorway (Avus) remains closed.

This was announced by the fire brigade after a briefing in the morning.

The reason for this is the still dangerous situation on the explosive site not far from the motorway.

There hasn't been a fire in the area of ​​the detonation site for a long time.

In some areas, however, there were still extremely high temperatures, explained fire department spokesman Thomas Kirstein.

The area is therefore still “the focus of operations par excellence”.

The emergency services tried to continue cooling there on Monday.

Among other things, a fire fighting vehicle and remote-controlled firefighting robots would be used because entering the area is life-threatening for firefighters.

Danger from ammunition and ordnance still high: emergency services in Grunewald cool the explosive site

"With the cooling, we hope to get a good forecast that the blocking circuit can be reduced at some point during the day," says Kirstein.

Then the Avus, which has been closed since the fire broke out on Thursday night, can be released again.

"But, let me be clear, we're going to be careful.

The danger that still exists from the ammunition and ordnance should not be underestimated.” Patience is therefore required.

If an explosive device explodes, parts of it could injure emergency services or be thrown onto the freeway and then affect motorists.

According to Kirstein, smaller ground fires continue to blaze in the forest around the blast site.

"They don't necessarily give us a headache, but they have to be worked on during the course of the day.

That's the big goal, that we'll move closer to the blasting site."

Fire in Berlin's Grunewald: situation still not under control

First report from August 8:

Berlin – In the middle of Berlin, several fires continue to rage at a police detonation site.

The situation in the operation area in Grunewald is stable, but not yet under control, the fire brigade announced on Monday (8 August).

The extinguishing work continued in the morning.

During the day they want to try to get closer to the blast site.

The aim is to reduce the danger area, said a spokesman.

According to the fire brigade, the fire in Berlin's Grunewald continues to burn.

There are still several embers.

The emergency services observed the situation overnight, but no extinguishing work took place in the dark.

On the other hand, there are no longer any flames at the blasting site itself, where the fire is said to have started.

However, the ground is still very hot.

The fire brigade can now use two firefighting robots and a firefighting tank to cool defined hotspots on the site.

Overall, the situation is assessed as very dynamic.

At a briefing scheduled for Monday morning, the emergency services on site want to reassess the situation.

Among other things, it should be discussed whether the Autobahn 115 - called Avus - which has been closed since Thursday can be released again.

Trains have been rolling on the railway line, which runs parallel to the motorway but at a slightly greater distance from the forest fire, since Saturday.

Fire brigade and police cars and are near the fire site at the Berlin police detonation site in Grunewald.

© Christophe Gateau/dpa

Explosive site in the middle of Berlin: Discussions about the location – Brandenburg will probably help out in the short term

The major fire in the middle of Berlin broke out last Thursday night (August 4th).

There had been fire and explosions on the site of the detonation site, where tons of old grenades, ammunition and confiscated fireworks were stored in buildings.

The police detonation site for the destruction of weapons and explosives in Grunewald has existed since 1950.

In view of the events, there is debate as to whether the blast site is in the right place in the middle of the capital.

In the short term, Brandenburg will help out with the disposal of explosive ordnance, said Berlin's Interior Senator Iris Spranger (SPD) on Sunday evening in the RBB "Abendschau".

After the current operation, the cause will first be clarified.

"I don't want to drive a 500-pound bomb for over 1.5 hours on any highway," she added.

70 years ago they thought something when choosing the location for the blasting site.

Since this is not near residential areas, the safety of the residents of Berlin and the security forces can be guaranteed.

Extreme heat and drought are increasing the risk of forest fires in many parts of Europe.

The situation in the Saxon Switzerland National Park is still not under control.

Flames were also blazing this summer in the popular holiday destinations of Italy, Spain and Greece.