Floor fires shake Wittenberg: fire brigade in continuous use!

Floor fires shake Wittenberg: fire brigade in continuous use!

In the district of Wittenberg in Saxony-Anhalt, the situation is tense: On Saturday, June 29, 2025, there were several wasteland fires that not only kept the fire brigade in suspense, but also led to considerable damage to property. In Zahna the fire spread to an adjacent building and damaged the roof structure. The estimated costs for this damage amount to around 50,000 euros. Also on a federal road, at Dorna and Rackith, about 115 meters of fiddlers burned, with several trees being affected.

On Sunday night, another fire was reported on a country road near Klitzschena, where about 15 square meters were on fire. The good news is that all fires could be deleted by the fire brigade in good time. But the situation remains serious: the police have started the investigation into the cause of the fires. The district of Wittenberg has declared a corresponding warning level due to the high risk of forest fire. This provides that paths in the forest are no longer allowed to be left.

increased risk of forest fire in several federal states

The forest fire index data for the current period from June 29 to July 3, 2025 indicate a high level of danger for Saxony-Anhalt. However, this is not an isolated case. A similar situation is observed in several federal states, as reported by the Wetterfähren.de portal. In North Rhine-Westphalia, for example, there is largely the danger of levels 2 to 4. In Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg, rising values ​​are also recorded that show medium to high danger for both federal states.

a worrying year for forest and wasteland fires

The fires in Saxony-Anhalt are part of a worrying trend. In 2022 there were 2,397 fires across Germany, which have an area of ​​around 3,058 hectares of forests; This corresponds approximately to the area of ​​the East Frisian island of Borkum. This was the year with the second largest charred area, only in 1992 it was even more. Almost 90 percent of the fires at that time performed between June and August. These statistics clearly show that the danger from forest fires has increased in recent years.

Brandenburg recorded the highest number of fires last year, while Saxony is in second place with 785 hectares and 217 fires. It is most frightening that the causes are unclear in around 42 percent of cases. The 36 percent of the fires caused by arson are also alarming. The general danger that runs out of the forest fire hazard level remains high and requires special care of forest visitors and campers.

The constant warnings and the current incidents in Saxony-Anhalt should be understood as a reminder: the protection of our forests is more important than ever, and everyone should help avoid forest fires.

For more information about the forest fire threats in Germany, you get in, here you can find a detailed overview: wetterfahren.de and for forest fire statistics from 2022 on Environmental dialog .