More than 400 people have been evacuated after a massive fire swept through a residential area in southeastern Norway, reports infohub.kz.
The fire has destroyed over 100 homes and is still not fully contained, though the threat of spread to other residential buildings has been significantly reduced.
The blaze began in the afternoon of July 18 in a townhouse in the Krokstadelva district of Drammen. Strong winds quickly spread the flames to neighboring homes and adjacent forest.
According to the Southeast Police District, the fire remains uncontrolled, but the risk of further spread to residential areas has significantly decreased. Firefighters continue to work on site, extinguishing smoldering hot spots. Over the past 24 hours, about 100 firefighters from ten fire and rescue services and 17 fire stations have been involved. Currently, 12 fire crews remain on site, assisted by the military, civil defense units, and police.
The Norwegian Directorate for Civil Protection (DSB) has deployed six firefighting helicopters, with seven more on standby in southern Norway. Approximately 800,000 liters of water have been dropped from the air on the disaster zone.
DSB Director Lars Jacob Hiiem described the event as the largest fire of its kind in modern Norwegian history. "Fortunately, there have been no reports of fatalities or serious injuries so far," he noted. Authorities say no one is missing. Two people, including a civil defense worker, were hospitalized with smoke inhalation. One firefighter sustained minor injuries, and eight police officers were affected by smoke.
According to fire service officials, there is no immediate threat to other residential buildings, but isolated forest fires continue to burn in the vicinity. On Friday night, firefighters had to temporarily leave some areas due to thunderstorms. Authorities hope that expected heavy rains will help finally bring the fire under control.