Oberwalliser Fire Brigades Receive Support for Firefighting
Published: Wednesday, Jul 26th 2023, 12:00
Updated At: Friday, Oct 13th 2023, 14:12
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For more than a week, firefighters have been battling a forest fire near Bitsch, Switzerland. To help relieve the Oberwalliser firefighters, 20 firefighters from the French-speaking part of the canton have been deployed since Wednesday. Further reinforcements are planned for the coming days, with 40 firefighters from the West Switzerland and 40 from the German Switzerland coming to help on Thursday and Friday, respectively. On Wednesday, 60 firefighters and two helicopters were already in action, making progress in the firefighting efforts. Thermal imaging from the air revealed around 150 "heat sources" in the affected area, which could be either embers or heated rocks. Flexible firefighting bags have also been tested and are now being used to fight the embers more precisely, reducing water consumption. Since the fire broke out on Monday evening, around 200 people had to leave their homes, but most were able to return the next day. Fortunately, there were no injuries or damage to buildings, but 100 hectares of forest - the equivalent of 140 football fields - were burned.
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