CTK
Updated 16 minutes ago
After the fire on Thursday afternoon, two fire brigades will patrol the area around Pravčická brány overnight. The others will go back to the bases. The fire scene is cold after being measured with a thermal camera. The next course of action will be decided in the morning, regional fire department spokesman Lukáš Marvan said. The fire was localized, according to Marvan, the liquidation will be announced on Friday morning at the earliest.
The general director of the fire department, Vladimír Vlček, said on the ČT broadcast that the fire spread to an area of 100 by 100 meters. A police helicopter also went to the scene, but in the end it was not needed during the intervention, added the spokesperson. The police arrested one person in connection with the fire.
The detainee may have a direct connection with the fire, added police spokeswoman Veronika Hyšplerová. He is suspected of the crime of public endangerment due to negligence. When asked what caused the fire, Hyšplerová said that at the moment the police cannot provide additional information because the investigation is at the beginning.
Tomáš Salov, spokesman for the Czech Switzerland National Park Administration, said that the fire started on the access road to the Pravčická Gate. According to his information, the fire was probably caused by pyrotechnics. “The road to Pravčická brána is closed from below,” the spokesman added. It could be open to tourists again on Friday. The road between Hřensk and the settlements of Mezná and Mezní Louka was closed due to the intervention of the firemen, the police are directing traffic in a shuttle manner.
Today is Father’s Day in Germany. ČTK found out on the spot that there were large groups of people in the reservation in the morning, and the parking lot was full. There were mainly foreign guests in one of the local restaurants. Salov said that during these celebrations, for which foreigners often choose the national park, incidents related to alcohol and pyrotechnics are often dealt with.
Minister of the Environment Petr Hladík (KDU-ČSL) na Twitter regarding the fire, he said that people with pyrotechnics have no business in national parks. “Only thanks to the careful work of the national park guards, it was probably possible to prevent further major damage,” said the minister. According to Salov, the patrol of the guards was strengthened, and thanks to this, it was possible to detect the fire in time.
People with pyrotechnics have no business in national parks. Only due to the careful work of the national park rangers, it was probably possible to prevent further major damage.
— Petr Hladík (@hladikpe) May 18, 2023
So far, the largest forest fire in the Czech Republic broke out last night on July 24 in the Czech Switzerland National Park. It covered over a thousand hectares. Extinguishing the fire was very difficult. 6,000 firefighters took turns at it. The police are investigating last year’s fire as a general threat. It was extinguished after 20 days.
