Berlin
Explosions at a police detonation site have triggered a large-scale operation by the fire brigade in Berlin’s Grunewald. A spokesman for the Berlin fire brigade said on Thursday that there was a fire in an area of 15,000 square meters on the blasting site and in the adjacent forest.
Because of ongoing explosions at the blast site, the fire brigade have not yet been able to start extinguishing. Ordnance and fireworks were stored at the police detonation site, the spokesman said. “The situation is unclear. The forest continues to burn uncontrollably.” He called on the population to avoid the area as far as possible.
120 firefighters are on duty. A police helicopter will be used to assess the situation, the spokesman said. The fire brigade is now preparing a bolt position. Because of the fire, the regional train and S-Bahn traffic near the area of operation was interrupted, as the railway announced. The nearby motorway and surrounding roads were also closed.
Fire must be fought from afar
The aim is to fight the fire at a distance of 1,000 meters from the blast site, according to the fire brigade. The firefighters cannot get any closer so as not to endanger themselves from further explosions.
The Federal Office for Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance had declared in the morning that “the forest and a storage facility for ammunition found by the Berlin police” were on fire. “Explosion noises and nuisance from fire gases are to be expected.”
The fire is expected to keep firefighters busy throughout the day. There is still an “enormous danger” from explosions and flying debris for the emergency services, a fire department spokesman told NTV.
Cause of explosion unclear
According to a police spokesman, it is still completely unclear how the explosion could have happened. Found ammunition is stored on the square and defused in a controlled manner by the explosive ordnance disposal service of the Berlin police.