High Fens Nature Reserve Is Burning Dangerously Close to the German Border, Prompting a German Town to Prepare for Possible Evacuations

The fire front in the High Fens, known in German as Hohes Venn, is now only about three kilometers from the German border, according to a statement released overnight by the nearby North Rhine-Westphalian town of Monschau on its website. The town has called on additional districts to prepare for a potential evacuation. The affected districts include Kalterherberg and Mützenich.

A spokesperson for the town told the German news agency dpa that this affects around 5,000 people. However, she emphasized that these are precautionary measures and that an evacuation is not currently expected.