Do Europe's wildfires now risk detonating the Second World War's buried shells?
As a fierce 2026 wildfire season sweeps across Europe, La Libre reports that bomb-disposal teams have been called out in the Netherlands over the risk that fire could disturb or detonate unexploded Second World War munitions.
In 30 seconds
- La Libre reported on 5 August 2026 that bomb-disposal teams were called out in the Netherlands over unexploded Second World War munitions amid Europe's wildfires.
- Sustained heat and fire can destabilise ageing shells and their fuzes, complicating both firefighting and disposal work.
- Belgium handles a comparable legacy through DOVO, the army disposal unit at Poelkapelle, which destroys recovered ordnance every year.
- Cross-border EU wildfire response runs through the EU Civil Protection Mechanism and its rescEU reserve, coordinated from Brussels.
A severe 2026 wildfire season across parts of Europe has, according to La Libre's live coverage of 5 August 2026, prompted authorities in the Netherlands to call in bomb-disposal specialists over the risk that fires could disturb or detonate unexploded Second World War munitions buried in the affected ground. Key named entities: La Libre (Belgian francophone daily reporting the development); DOVO, the Belgian Defence explosive-ordnance disposal unit at Poelkapelle; the EU Civil Protection Mechanism and its rescEU reserve, coordinated from Brussels; and the countries most exposed to buried First and Second World War ordnance in northwest Europe — the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany.
Background
Northwest Europe has spent a century living with the buried debris of industrial-scale warfare. In Belgium, the 'iron harvest' — shells, grenades and gas munitions surfacing in fields around Ypres and the former Western Front — has been a routine spring occurrence since 1918, and the Belgian army's DOVO unit destroys tonnes of recovered ordnance annually. The Netherlands carries a comparable legacy from 1940-1945, with unexploded bombs still found regularly during construction and land clearance. Fire adds a new pressure to this old problem by threatening to destabilise ordnance in place rather than during controlled recovery.
What to do
Residents near fire-affected or historically contaminated land should heed evacuation and access restrictions; disposal work may delay the reopening of burnt areas; and Belgian civil-protection planning for combined fire-and-ordnance scenarios may come under review.
The Belgian angle
Belgium is directly exposed to the same risk: West Flanders, along the old Western Front, and parts of the Ardennes contain large quantities of buried First and Second World War ordnance handled year-round by the army's DOVO unit at Poelkapelle. A significant wildfire crossing munitions-contaminated land would place similar demands on Belgian civil-protection and disposal services.
EvidenceDeveloping · 1 primary source · Background sources: 1 · some details remain unconfirmedExplore evidence →Hide evidence ↑
- Published:
- 5 Aug 2026, 02:00
- Retrieved by ODIN:
- 8 Aug 2026
- Publication date unavailable
- Retrieved by ODIN:
- 8 Aug 2026
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