Belgium’s Largest Wildfire Rages as King Visits High Fens
Belgium is battling the largest wildfire in its history as flames continue to consume the High Fens nature reserve in the Ardennes, with approximately 3,000 hectares—nearly 4,200 football fields—already destroyed. King Filip interrupted his vacation on Monday to visit the affected area and meet with emergency teams coordinating the response, according to VRT NWS.
The fire, which broke out on Friday afternoon and spread at speeds of 5 to 10 kilometers per hour, has forced the evacuation of approximately 600 people from the villages of Sourbrodt and Bütgenbach, with parts of the German border town of Monschau also evacuated. Emergency services and the governor of Liege province say they hope the blaze will be brought under control by today, tomorrow, or Wednesday.
A Historic Disaster Unfolds
The fire has already surpassed the previous record wildfire in Belgium—the 2011 High Fens fire that destroyed 1,300 hectares—by more than double, making it the largest wildfire in the country’s history, as NRC reported. The blaze has reached spruce forest zones, making firefighting efforts significantly more difficult.
“The fire has unfortunately reached a zone with spruce trees, making the firefighting efforts even more difficult,” said Herve Jamar, governor of Liege province, as reported by VRT NWS.
What makes this fire particularly challenging is the nature of the terrain. The High Fens is a peat bog plateau—one of the last remaining wilderness areas in Western Europe—and the peat continues to smolder underground even after surface flames are extinguished. Firefighters warn the fire could reignite for months.
“Extinguishing is impossible, but we can suppress flare-ups,” said firefighter Frederick Van Der Have of the Zuid-West Limburg fire zone, according to VRT NWS. “Due to the wind and flare-ups, we are permanently chasing the facts,” added colleague Frank Parthoens.
International Response Mobilizes
Approximately 500 emergency responders and 120 vehicles are deployed in the firefighting effort. Belgium has received significant international assistance, including two Dutch Chinook helicopters, two German NH-90 helicopters, two Norwegian firefighting helicopters, and two Swedish Air Tractor firefighting aircraft, as NOS reported.
The Dutch helicopters, with their massive 7,500-liter capacity, have been crucial in the aerial assault on the flames. German NH-90 helicopters equipped with “Bambi Bucket” water containers capable of releasing 2,000 liters per flight are also assisting, according to VRT NWS.
However, Belgium’s own aerial firefighting capacity has come under scrutiny. The firefighting aircraft normally stationed at Zwartberg airfield in Genk are currently contracted to the Turkish government and cannot be deployed, as VRT NWS reported. One spare aircraft in Luxembourg cannot fly because the airspace above the High Fens is too congested.
Interior Minister Bernard Quintin defended the arrangement, saying: “That is the principle of European solidarity. We cannot expect everyone to come help us while we don’t help anyone.”
Marc Gilbert, president of the Royal Belgian Fire Brigade Federation, has called for a European fleet of firefighting aircraft, saying Belgium’s two police helicopters “are very nice, but they are not sufficient. We must act quickly.”
King Filip Visits Crisis Center
King Filip arrived at the provincial crisis center in Vottem on Monday morning, where he was received by Walloon Minister-President Adrien Dolimont, Interior Minister Bernard Quintin, Vice-Premier Jan Jambon, and Governor Herve Jamar. Jambon represented Prime Minister Bart De Wever, who is on vacation in Japan, as VRT NWS reported. The king’s visit also included the coordination center to assess the scale of the damage.
The visit was also covered by Ditjes en Datjes, which noted the king was meeting with teams fighting the fire and those ensuring the safety of the population.
Environmental and Health Impacts
The fire has had severe environmental consequences. A rare pyrocumulus cloud—formed by the intense heat of the fire—was observed above the blaze, the first confirmed sighting in Belgium, according to VRT NWS. These clouds can push burning particles high into the atmosphere and potentially create new fire starts at greater distances.
Extremely high particulate matter concentrations have been measured in the region, with over 700 micrograms per cubic meter hourly average recorded in Vielsalm, about 25 kilometers south of the fire. The World Health Organization recommends a daily average of no more than 15 micrograms per cubic meter. Smoke has been detected as far as 80 kilometers away, with residents in the Netherlands’ South Limburg province reporting significant smoke and odor issues, as L1 Nieuws reported.
The environmental toll extends beyond the immediate destruction. Years of conservation work in the High Fens—including rewetting efforts and diverse planting to make the area more resilient—have been lost, as NRC reported. Local officials and climate experts have described the situation as “a catastrophe of unprecedented dimensions.”
A European Summer of Fire
The High Fens fire is part of a broader pattern of extreme drought and wildfires across Europe this summer. France has seen massive fires in the Landes region, the United Kingdom experienced its hottest day of the year with 37 active fires, Spain’s Huesca fire has burned over 11,000 hectares, and major fires have raged in Germany, Croatia, and the Balkans, as NOS reported.
Experts had warned earlier this summer that Belgium was not sufficiently prepared for the increasing risk of wildfires due to climate change, though they noted the country’s fragmented landscape and more moderate conditions made mega-fires like those in southern Europe less likely, according to VRT NWS. The current fire has proven those assessments tragically wrong.
What’s Next
Authorities hope the fire will be contained by Wednesday, but the fight is far from over. The peat bogs will continue to smolder underground, requiring weeks of monitoring and flare-up suppression. The approximately 600 evacuees from Sourbrodt and Bütgenbach cannot yet return home, with Governor Jamar stating that “given the current situation, a return is currently excluded for an indefinite period.”
The Liege public prosecutor’s office has opened an investigation into the cause of the fire, which remains unknown—whether intentional or accidental. Meanwhile, the broader questions about Belgium’s firefighting capacity and preparedness for a changing climate will likely dominate political debate in the weeks ahead.
As the rain falls on the smoldering peat—welcome but insufficient, according to SPW spokesperson Nicolas Yernaux—the nation watches and waits, hoping the largest fire in Belgian history will soon be under control.