Belgium Seeks European Air Support for 3,000-Hectare High Fens Wildfire

Q: As extreme heat fuels Belgium's worst inferno since 1911, what sparked the mysterious blaze in this inaccessible reserve?

The blaze’s cause is still unknown. Officials say investigators have not yet been able to determine what sparked the fire because the suspected ignition point lies in a part of the High Fens that crews still cannot safely reach. The reserve’s peat bogs, heathland, pine forest and soft ground have made access extremely difficult, while shifting winds and intense heat allowed the fire to spread rapidly before a close inspection was possible. What is clear is that weather and terrain turned the incident into a major disaster. Belgium was in another spell of extreme heat, with temperatures reaching about 37C, and authorities said the combination of drought-like conditions, dry vegetation and changing winds repeatedly pushed the flames in new directions. In peat-rich ground, fires can also continue smouldering below the surface, complicating suppression and later investigation. So while the mystery remains unresolved, the available reporting points to this: no official source has identified a trigger yet, and the inaccessible origin area has prevented confirmation of whether it began through human activity, accident, or natural causes.

Q: What hidden dangers within the burning peatlands forced Belgium to plead for urgent aerial rescues from across Europe?

The main hidden danger was the peat itself: once dried and ignited, peat can smoulder underground, keeping heat and embers alive below the visible fire line. That makes a wildfire far harder to extinguish than an ordinary surface blaze and means a drop in flames does not necessarily mean the fire is contained. In Belgium’s High Fens, this risk was compounded by terrain that crews could barely enter. The reserve is a mix of peat bogs, heath, pine forest and raised wooden boardwalks, where heavy vehicles can sink and firefighters cannot safely attack the fire at close range. Rescue teams were even unable to reach the ignition area. In peatland fires, apparently solid ground can also conceal intense heat, burning roots and hollowed-out subsurface pockets. That combination creates two operational threats: the fire can persist and re-emerge from below ground, and ground crews face unstable, inaccessible terrain. With winds repeatedly shifting and smoke spreading toward homes and across borders, Belgium needed helicopters and water-bombing aircraft not just to slow the flames from above but to reach sectors that firefighters on foot and in vehicles could not safely access. Officials have not publicly confirmed the full extent of active underground peat combustion, but the peat-rich landscape was central to why the fire became so complex and why Belgium urgently sought aerial help from European partners.

3 articles · Updated · POLITICO Europe · Aug 16

Belgium was awaiting aircraft from several European countries on Sunday as it tried to contain the largest wildfire in its modern history.
More than 250 firefighters and emergency personnel worked through the night in the High Fens nature reserve near the German border, where the blaze has burned since Friday.
Firefighters said air support is crucial to stopping the fire's spread and bringing the 3,000-hectare blaze under control.
The fire's scale makes it an exceptional emergency for Belgium, with the response now expanding beyond national resources.