On Tuesday, four helicopters from the Federal Army were called in to support the firefighting forces, the Liezen fire department confirmed. One will be used in a forest in Großreifling, three in Hinterwildalpen in a “difficult to access area”. Inhabited areas are not affected; extinguishing efforts could take a few more days.
Image: St. Marein fire department in Mürztal
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Image: St. Marein fire department in Mürztal
Defective power lines as a result of squalls are likely to have triggered the fires on Monday – “on one occasion it is obvious, on the other it is probable,” said the fire department. Because of the storm, no air traffic was possible on Monday, reported Christoph Schlüßlmayr from the Liezen area fire brigade association. On Tuesday, a total of around 300 personnel were deployed to both forest fires, around 40 of whom belong to the helicopter teams. The extinguishing work would “take a few more days,” said Schlüßlmayr.
The Federal Army uses three Agusta Bell 212 helicopters and an S-70 “Black Hawk”. They can transport up to one or four tons of fire-fighting water. “The helicopters pick up the water from the Salza and drop it over the emergency sites,” said the fire department. The water is also used for the men’s and women’s firefighting backpacks.
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In the run-up to the state governors’ conference on Wednesday in St. Pölten, the Styrian governor Christopher Drexler (ÖVP) called for more money for fighting forest fires. The federal states have access to funds from the federal forest fund. However, the costs would exceed the planned amount, said Drexler in a press release on Tuesday. He would also like funding restrictions to be reduced and fire brigade vehicles to also be funded in the future.