About 500 people have been evacuated from Mt. in northern Germany due to a forest fire, a spokesman for the Harz region announced last night, after the fire continued to spread despite efforts to contain it, DPA reported, quoted by BTA.
Tourists, mountaineers and athletes are taken by bus from Broken - the highest peak in the Harz mountain range. The fire was discovered yesterday afternoon in Königsberg.
By evening, two planes from the state of Lower Saxony, one plane from Harz county and one helicopter had been dispatched to the firefighting effort, the county spokesman said, adding that six more helicopters had been requested.
Several fires have merged, creating a larger front, despite the efforts of 150 firefighters on the ground, he said.
The city of Wernigerode and the regional district have formed a joint task force. The narrow-gauge Harz has closed one route due to the forest fire, which has led to significant delays, DPA informs.
The risk of forest fires is currently very high in large parts of the state of Saxony-Anhalt following the recent fires, especially in the northern part of the state, although most of them were soon extinguished, the agency noted.