The fire was limited to the grounds of the Allentsteig (Tüpl) military training area, where it also broke out during target practice, as Tüpl spokesman Dietmar Butschell emphasized in an interview with APA.
To fight the fire, the emergency services set up two large water lines at the military training area to contain the fire. According to Butschell, there were still two sources of fire on Sunday afternoon – one to the north and one to the east. With both, as with the water belts, the further development is being observed. The fire is under control, but “fire out” cannot yet be given. The fire keeps going out in places, “but it flares up again when the wind blows in,” said Butschell.
The forces of the Federal Army were on the spot with several tank extinguishing vehicles. The last civilian force, the Allentsteig fire brigade, returned in the morning after hours of extinguishing work. In the meantime, up to 24 fire brigades with 42 vehicles and 249 members were on duty on Saturday, district fire brigade commander Ewald Edelmaier told APA. With a lot of effort, it was possible to prevent the fire from spreading further, so that it is now limited to the Tüpl.
The extinguishing work was initially difficult on Saturday because the wind fanned the fire again and again. Defense lines were set up along the forest roads, which were irrigated to prevent the fire from spreading to other parts of the forest or fields. To make matters worse, the emergency services were not allowed to leave the paths due to any duds. Among other things, splinter-protected fire engines and splinter-protected tractors with liquid manure tanks were used.
The cause of the fire was artillery fire by the army, which led to the fire at 10:45 a.m. The persistent drought, which has already led to field and forest fires in Lower Austria several times in recent weeks, is likely to have played its part. For this reason, a forest fire ordinance was issued in all districts. This means that smoking and lighting fires in and near the forest is currently prohibited. Violations are punished with administrative penalties of up to 7,270 euros or four weeks imprisonment.
Source: Nachrichten
