A wildfire described as Belgium's largest in recent history has more than doubled in size in just 24 hours, officials said Sunday.
Hundreds of firefighters have been operating for a third day, fighting flames that are tearing through the country's largest nature reserve and prompting the evacuation of two nearby villages.
Local farmers rushed water tankers into the park along the eastern border with Germany, while a quartet of aerial support teams—including two Belgian and two Dutch helicopters—shouldered the load, and two Swedish water‑bombing aircraft arrived to assist.
The fire is one of several that have broken out across Europe this weekend, with Greek island authorities reporting fatalities elsewhere on Sunday.
Belgians warned that the combination of heat, bog‑like terrain, moorland and forest made containment difficult.
According to AFP cited by local officials, the blaze expanded from 80 hectares (200 acres) on Friday to 850 hectares on Saturday morning, before reaching 3,000 hectares early Sunday.
Interior Minister Bernard Quintin said two fronts—aiming toward Jalhay and Monschau—had been brought under control, but the conditions remained tough and authorities are relying heavily on aerial assistance. No homes have been affected thus far.
The region’s fires are part of a wider pattern of Europe’s summer heatwave‑driven wildfires, with countries such as Croatia, Spain and Serbia reporting outbreaks in the past week.
