A huge fire broke out in one of Berlin's largest forests Thursday morning, due to several explosions at an ammunition dump inside the forest, on what is expected to be one of the hottest days of the year in the country.
The official German news agency (dpa) reported that more than 100 firefighters were fighting the fire in the "Grunewald" forest, west of Berlin, indicating that the fire was spreading quickly, and huge explosions could be heard from the site where it was stored. Old World War II ammunition, as well as fireworks, ammunition, and controlled ammunition detonation.
"The situation is dangerous the fire is not under control, the forest is burning uncontrollably," Thomas Kerstein, an official with the Berlin Fire Department, told reporters, noting that "the cause of the first explosions in the ammunition depot in the early hours of Thursday morning is not yet clear."
According to the agency, the site was established in 1950, and before today's explosions, about twenty-five tons of fireworks, World War II ammunition and other explosive munitions were stored there.
The site witnesses controlled explosions twice a year, each lasting for several days.
It is noteworthy that explosive materials are stored at this site and are defused by the bomb disposal center of the Berlin police. The spokesman said that the drought in the forest and ammunition materials that are still stored at the site is a major challenge.
A large part of the country suffers from "extreme" or "exceptional" droughts, including Berlin, according to an institute for environmental research. The German Meteorological Service said that the expected temperature on Thursday will be between 34 and 38 degrees Celsius.
Scientists say that recurrent heat waves are clear evidence of climate warming, considering that these waves are expected to increase, lengthen and intensify.
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