Forest fire in Müritz National Park extinguished – search for the cause ongoing

According to the ministry, Till Backhaus had traveled to the site together with the head of Müritz National Park, Ulf Zimmermann, and the district administrator of the Mecklenburgische Seenplatte district, Thomas Müller (CDU), to provide information on further steps. The fire had been reported a week earlier and had spread across a former military training area whose soil still contains munitions remnants from the Second World War and the GDR era – including large anti-tank mines.

Obstacles due to munitions remnants in the ground

The fire's extent of just under four square kilometers remained unchanged, the ministry said. According to the district, hundreds of hectares are affected. It now stretches across around 390 hectares. The fire apparently started near the observation tower on the Käflingsberg and spread rapidly due to the dryness and wind. After its military use, the affected area had reverted to forest within roughly 30 years.

In active firefighting, the more than 350 emergency personnel are currently focusing mainly on the eastern part of the national park, as that area is not contaminated with munitions. Up to 500 helpers were on site at times, the majority of them working on a voluntary basis. The number of personnel has now been reduced to 300. Columns of smoke are still visible but diminishing, the district said.

Water barriers and irrigation systems

Firefighting efforts elsewhere were repeatedly hampered by exploding munitions on a former military training area. Explosions have occurred again and again in the fire zone. Emergency personnel must maintain a safety distance of around 1,000 meters. Most recently, rain had provided some relief. Drones can now also be deployed again to get a more precise picture of the situation.

The fire zone is now fully encircled by lines of so-called circular sprinklers; the irrigation systems are running at full capacity. The Mecklenburgische Seenplatte district announced that so-called water barriers had been set up. These water the ground and trees in the wooded area that has not yet burned, meaning the fire cannot spread further, it said.

A team from the Adelsdorf fire department alone manages 60 of these devices, which deliver around 6,000 liters of water per minute. A wide strip between the fire zone and the railway line has been so heavily watered that flames cannot jump over toward the rail line. Water cannons of the state police have also assisted with extinguishing and watered the area between Granzin and the fire zone.

Bundeswehr, police, and cross-regional assistance

Most recently, two Bundeswehr helicopters were also deployed. However, in recent days they alone dropped 1.5 million liters of water over the fire site. The two Bundeswehr helicopters were not used in firefighting on Sunday because the pilots had to observe their rest periods. Two police water cannons and a special firefighting unit from Lower Saxony have now been requested.

Special firefighting units from Lower Saxony are also involved in the extinguishing efforts – particularly near the Berlin-Neustrelitz-Rostock railway line. Support has come from, among others, Bavaria, Brandenburg, and Saxony. The THW (Federal Agency for Technical Relief) has also reinforced its forces. The German Red Cross is meanwhile supplying the emergency personnel with thousands of sandwiches, hot meals, and drinks; mosquito spray and sunscreen have also become part of the firefighters' repertoire.

Suspicion of arson and investigations

The cause remains unknown. District Administrator Thomas Müller said personally: "Ich persönlich gehe auch davon aus, dass dieser Brand nicht von allein entstanden ist." He also stated: "Für mich ist es auch seltsam, dass wir innerhalb so kürzester Zeit zwei so große Brände haben." He also said that police are investigating in all directions.

During the night to Sunday, the fire spread only "slightly." As a precaution, people had to temporarily leave their homes. The evacuation of the village of Granzin, with around 100 residents, was provisionally lifted on Saturday. The Mecklenburgische Seenplatte district has set up a citizen hotline for those affected and residents at the numbers (0395) 57087-8230, -8070, and -8190.

Consequences for residents and protective measures

Over a wide area, there are still odor nuisances – from Granzin to Neubrandenburg and on to Friedland. There is currently no access to the observation tower on the Käflingsberg; it is closed for the duration of the operation. The fire zone will therefore continue to be monitored closely in order to detect any remaining hotspots early and extinguish them if necessary.

The head of the Müritz National Park office, Ulf Zimmermann, expressed confidence about the area's long-term development: "Wir haben aber die Erfahrung gemacht, dass sich die Natur doch wieder sehr schnell erholt." Mecklenburg-Vorpommern's Environment Minister Backhaus at the same time stated that although the fire was extinguished, a final all-clear remained impossible because of the munitions remnants in the ground.