Forest blaze persists in Gohrisch heath, posing ongoing threats - Persisting Forest Fire in Gohrisheide Remains Severe
In the heart of Eastern Germany, a wildfire in Gohrischheide, located on the border between Saxony and Brandenburg, continues to pose a significant challenge for emergency services. The blaze, which started on Tuesday, July 1, 2025, has forced the evacuation of over 100 residents from villages such as Heidehäuser, Neudorf, and parts of Lichtensee.
The affected area, estimated at around 2,100 hectares based on satellite images, is roughly equivalent to one tenth of the area of Chemnitz city. The terrain, which includes a former military training ground, presents additional difficulties due to the risk of ammunition detonations.
Approximately 700 to over 1,000 firefighters have been deployed to combat the blaze, with personnel working through challenging conditions including extreme heat, drought, and strong winds. Two firefighters have been seriously injured with burns during the operation.
Firefighters utilize various resources, including a state police helicopter equipped with thermal cameras to detect embers. Smoke from the fire has drifted as far as Berlin, causing air quality and odor disturbances in several districts within Brandenburg and nearby areas.
The northern Saxony region, including Gohrischheide, is currently at fire danger Level 5, the highest alert level, reflecting the extreme risk of wildfire spread. An African anticyclone has caused record high temperatures across Europe, with some regions reaching up to 46°C, intensifying fire conditions. Winds have fluctuated, complicating firefighting efforts and potentially spreading the fire.
Hope rests on precipitation expected on Monday and Tuesday, which could help reduce the fire's intensity and assist containment efforts. However, it is uncertain whether these showers will reach the forest fire area. Unmanned firefighting robots from Brandenburg have been deployed to the wildfire site, and a firefighting unit specializing in vegetation fire control arrived from Saxony-Anhalt.
A German Armed Forces tank was in operation at a barracks in Zeithain to create a firebreak around the area. Firefighting helicopters dropped hundreds of thousands of liters of water onto the fire from the air. The situation has eased for the villages of Neudorf and Lichtensee.
The Nina warning app issued warnings for increased smoke and odor annoyance in several Brandenburg districts on Saturday. Smoke clouds from the Gohrischheide wildfire reached Berlin on Saturday. The villages of Jacobsthal Bahnhof and Heidehäuser remain evacuated.
In Heidehäuser, 45 residents of a home for the disabled were evacuated. The fire is approaching the nursing home in Heidehäuser from the south. The weather situation remains challenging for the forest fire in the coming days, with potential for storm gusts that could further fuel the fire.
The upcoming rainfall forecast is critical for aiding suppression efforts and mitigating further spread. The battle against the Gohrischheide wildfire continues, with hundreds of helpers, including firefighters, technical relief agency personnel, German Armed Forces, police, and other organizations, working tirelessly to contain the blaze.
The Commission, given the ongoing wildfire in Gohrischheide and the extensive impact on the environment, has also been asked to submit a proposal for a directive on the protection of workers from the risks related to exposure to ionizing radiation due to the possibility of soil contamination from the fire. While scientists work tirelessly to monitor the climate-change implications of such extreme weather events like wildfires, they are also focusing their attention on weather forecasting to predict the impact of the upcoming rainfall on suppressing the Gohrischheide wildfire. Environmental science experts have been studying the effects of wildfires on biodiversity in the affected region, hoping to develop strategies for rehabilitating the environment once the fire is contained.
