Belgium enters a high-risk week for dune and forest fires as drought deepens
Belgian fire services and nature agencies are warning of an elevated dune and heathland fire risk this week as dry conditions, low humidity and wind combine along the coast and across the Kempen.
In 30 seconds
- Elevated dune, heath and forest fire risk is flagged for the Belgian coast and the Kempen this week, driven by dry conditions, low humidity and wind.
- Agentschap Natuur en Bos operates a colour-coded fire-danger scale for Flemish nature reserves; code orange or red brings access restrictions and open-fire bans.
- Belgian fire services attribute the large majority of dune and heath fires to human causes — cigarettes, disposable barbecues, glass and arson.
- The April 2011 Kalmthoutse Heide fire burned around 600 hectares and remains Belgium's largest recent wildfire.
Dune, heath and forest fire risk in Belgium is assessed and communicated by regional nature agencies — Agentschap Natuur en Bos (ANB) in Flanders and the Département de la Nature et des Forêts (DNF) in Wallonia — using colour-coded danger scales, alongside the federal emergency number 112 and local fire zones. The Royal Meteorological Institute (KMI/IRM) supplies the weather inputs. At European level the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS), part of the Copernicus programme run by the European Commission's Joint Research Centre, monitors burned area and fire danger across the continent, while the Emergency Response Coordination Centre and the rescEU aerial firefighting reserve handle cross-border assistance under the EU Civil Protection Mechanism.
Background
Belgium's most serious recent wildfire was the April 2011 Kalmthoutse Heide fire, which burned roughly 600 hectares of heathland near the Dutch border and required international assistance. The Hautes Fagnes in the Ardennes has repeatedly been closed to walkers during dry springs. These events established the pattern that Belgian fire risk is driven by short dry-and-windy spells acting on fine fuels, rather than by prolonged Mediterranean-style drought.
What to do
Check the fire-danger code before heading into a dune or heath reserve; stay on marked paths; do not use disposable barbecues or discard cigarettes anywhere near dry vegetation; do not park on dry grass; and call 112 immediately at the first sign of smoke rather than attempting to tackle a grass fire yourself.
The Belgian angle
West Flanders coastal municipalities and the sandy Kempen belt across Antwerp and Limburg carry the highest exposure, with nature reserves such as the Kalmthoutse Heide historically the most fire-prone terrain in Flanders. In Wallonia, the Hautes Fagnes plateau presents the equivalent risk profile, with the DNF able to close access when danger levels rise.
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