“The challenge facing the emergency services here in the Rax-Schneeberg area is enormous,” said Chancellor Alexander Schallenberg. Defense Minister Klaudia Tanner and Agriculture Minister Elisabeth Köstinger also got a picture on site. Around 500 helpers, including 400 firefighters, were on duty on Thursday.
In many flights, helicopters poured extinguishing water into the impassable fire area. This should prevent the flames from spreading to a neighboring forest area. Settlements are not at risk.
The fire broke out on Monday. The flames spread extremely quickly – from five to more than 100 hectares in ten hours. The fire on an area of around 150 football fields is considered the largest forest fire in Austria to date.