Danger of forest fires in Saxony: Avoid the forests!

Danger of forest fires in Saxony: Avoid the forests!

The risk of forest fires in Saxony is currently reaching alarming levels. Due to the ongoing dryness and high temperatures, the forest fire danger level 4 applies throughout the Free State. In the northern districts of Görlitz, Bautzen, Northern Saxony, the Meißen district and the city of Dresden, the highest danger warning level 5 even applies. These developments were documented by MDR. This means that people in these regions need to be extremely careful and avoid spending time in forests.

Warning level 5 has been in effect since Tuesday, particularly in parts of the Northern Saxony district, which strictly prohibits entering the forests. Given that 75 percent of the forest fires in Saxony last year were caused by humans, this warning should be taken all the more seriously. So far there have been numerous reports of major fires, including in the Bad Lausick area and in southern Brandenburg.

Precautions and prohibitions

Careful behavior in nature is now more important than ever. According to the legal regulations of the Forest Act for the Free State of Saxony (§ 15 SächsWaldG), the use of open fires in forests is prohibited all year round - regardless of the forest fire danger levels. This applies to smoking, grilling and also to sky lanterns. If someone violates these rules, this can result in severe fines that can amount to up to 10,000 euros, as the information from Wald Sachsen shows.

Why is this important? The dry ground vegetation can easily catch fire, and even the slightest carelessness can have devastating consequences. It is therefore advisable not to block access routes to forest areas, as these must be available to rescue workers in an emergency. In the event of a fire, the fire brigade should be informed immediately on number 112.

Current forecast

However, there is a ray of hope: According to the current forecast, there could be a slight relaxation in the risk of forest fires on Thursday and Friday, as a drop in temperature is expected. Nevertheless, an increase in the danger situation is forecast in the northern areas of Saxony at the weekend. The danger levels updated daily by lvz show that five different levels from 1 (very low) to 5 (very high) danger are always set up to inform and raise awareness among the population about the risk of forest fires. Factors such as precipitation, temperature, wind speed and humidity influence these classifications.

Citizens are called upon to be careful and take the warnings seriously. Only together can the risk of forest fires in Saxony be minimized.