Members of the Berlin fire department are trying to control the fire unleashed in the Grunewald forest, the largest in the German capital, which originated from the detonation in an explosives deposit located in an enclosure in that forest area.
Until now, firefighters have not been able to access the deposit, but instead work in a one-kilometer radius around it to prevent its extension, according to information from regional public television Rbb.
Until now they have not been able to access the area where the deposit is located, for fear of new detonations.
The fire originated last morning and affects 1.5 hectares of the forest, whose total area is 4.5 hectares and which is located between two districts in the west of the German capital.
The highway that crosses the forest has been completely closed to traffic, as well as several highways and neighborhood streets.
The situation is extremely complex, due to the aforementioned deposit, a place where bomb squads regularly detonate explosives and ammunition in a controlled manner.
These controlled operations are not carried out in summer, but the explosives are kept stored there until they resume, already in the autumn.
The fire has also occurred on a day where maximums of up to 37 degrees are expected in Berlin.
The Grunewald forest, like others in Berlin and the neighboring “Land” of Brandenburg, are suffering from the effects of drought, after several years with less rain than usual and under successive heat waves.
150 firefighters have been deployed to the Grunewald forest, as well as police and rescue teams, reinforced by air from helicopters and surveillance drones.