On Wednesday, April 29, a fire broke out on the military training grounds of 't Harde in Gelderland. A wildfire was also noticed in the Oosterhout region.
Multiple fire units were deployed to contain the blaze, while a large cloud of smoke was visible for miles around. Defense and local authorities are closely monitoring the situation.
The fire at 't Harde, a well-known military training area, started Wednesday afternoon and quickly spread through dry grass and vegetation. Emergency services rushed out en masse, with corps from surrounding municipalities coming to the rescue. According to initial reports, the fire is not yet fully under control, partly due to the changing wind direction that is driving the smoke over nearby villages such as Nunspeet and Harderwijk. Aerial images showed black smoke and smoldering remains Wednesday afternoon. Area residents are advised to close windows and doors and turn off ventilation systems to avoid health risks.
There are also reports of a second fire near Oosterhout, North Brabant, at another military site. Details on this are as yet scarce. The plume of smoke is also visible there from dozens of kilometers away. It is still unclear whether the two incidents are related. Defense has not yet released an official statement, but the Royal Netherlands Military Constabulary (KMar) has already launched an investigation into the cause.
The Noord- en Oost-Gelderland Safety Region is coordinating firefighting efforts with large equipment, including fire engines and fire trucks. "We are doing everything we can to prevent expansion and keep the area safe," a spokesman told the Dutch press in an official comment. As yet, there are no reports of injuries or evacuations, but traffic on nearby roads is being inconvenienced by road closures. The fire department already expects that extinguishing work will have to be continued for some time and that further extinguishing will certainly have to take place during the night of Wednesday to Thursday.
Illustration image of a fire fighting vehicle of the Dutch fire department - ©Unsplash