Large wildfire breaks out near Kessel campsite following ‘t Harde blaze

A large wildfire has broken out between Helden and Kessel in the Dutch province of Limburg. This is the second blaze to occur in a short period. The risk of wildfires is currently high due to the dry weather.

Kessel blaze labelled very large wildfire 

During the late hours on Wednesday, April 29, a very large fire broke out near the De Heldense Bossen campsite near Kessel. Due to the scale of the fire and the large amount of smoke being given off, the wildfire was instantly scaled up to a Grip 1, reports the Limburg-Noord Veiligheidsregio.

By 4.55am on Thursday, the fire had spread to an area of 30.000 square metres. A helicopter is being deployed by emergency services to douse the flames, which may cause noise nuisance for residents in nearby municipalities. 

Anyone in the area is advised to stay out of the forest on the east side of the campsite. Roads being used to access the fire by firefighters will also be closed off. 

Still risk of ‘t Harde wildfire flaring up again

In the morning on Wednesday, a fire started at the military training ground near ‘t Harde in Gelderland. Since then, emergency services have been trying to extinguish the fire and while it may be partly under control on Thursday morning there is still a risk that the flames will flare up again due to the wind.

Up to 150 firefighters from all over the Netherlands worked through the night to contain the fire. "That was successful, there has been no spread, but the coming hours will be tense," a spokesperson for the North and East Gelderland Safety Region told NOS.

The smoke from the fire was visible as far as the North Sea. The A28 motorway was closed during the day on Wednesday because of it and an NL-Alert was sent out to residents in nearby areas. Another closure of the motorway has not been ruled out.

Increased wildfire risk in the Netherlands due to drought

In the last week, there have been multiple wildfires in the Netherlands, something the fire department expects to occur more often due to the persistent drought. The weather has been rather sunny and rain-free in recent weeks, with temperatures set to reach 26 degrees celsius this week and hopefully bring some rain showers in the days that follow. 

Almost all safety regions have scaled up to phase 2, the highest warning level. This means emergency services are extra alert and additional equipment is carried by firefighters to more quickly bring a fire under control.

It is also a more common occurrence for multiple fires to blaze at the same time. "That makes it challenging for the fire department, because we have to deploy equipment in multiple locations at the same time,” the national coordinator for wildfire management at the Netherlands Institute for Public Safety (NIPV) Edwin Kok told NOS. “Additionally, the fires are becoming more intense, making them even more difficult to fight."

While the fire department considers more extinguishing and preventive techniques, Kok also urges the public to take extra care. "We ask people to be alert and not to use fire in nature. Be aware of the risks you can also cause yourself."