w transcript "Belgium: Fire has eaten its way into the peat and continues to burn in some places even without oxygen." VERTEX report Aug 18 Read and watch at Heating Planet blog

500 firefighters, nine nations, and unstoppable wildfires: "Belgium is burning, and the flames have now gone underground."

Screenshot above video below Europe On Fire | Belgium’s Worst Wildfire In 100 Years Joins Blazes Across 9 Nations |

 What makes the Belgium wildfire particularly dangerous is that flames have spread underground through the peat, allowing the fire to smolder beneath the surface and potentially reignite weeks or even months later. Around 600 residents remain unable to return home, while firefighters continue operations with support from multiple European countries. The crisis comes as wildfires spread across Europe, with France, Spain, Greece, Germany and other nations also battling severe blazes amid extreme heat and prolonged drought. 

VERTEX channel on YT since Jul 4 2022 from USA

[The Eternal journalist continues to file dispatches on the demise of planet Earth]

TRANSCRIPT

0:08

Belgium is burning, and the flames have now gone underground. Ancient peat bogs that formed over thousands of years, erased in a single summer. One can't see it, one can't reach it, and it won't stop.

Is this Europe's most dangerous wildfire ever?

On August 17th, 2026, firefighters in Belgium battled to contain the country's worst wildfires in a century as authorities across Europe continued efforts to control devastating summer blazes.

According to Reuters, some 500 firefighters are attempting to fight the wildfire that so far has destroyed 3,000 hectares and 7,400 acres of land. A forestry officer said that Belgium's biggest wildfire on record has caused irreparable damage to rare biotopes.

There is irreparable damage because we had two active upland Peat bogs in there. There are only three of those in Belgium. These are very very protected biotopes. Also rare biotopes. They take thousands of years to develop and become overgrown.

1:26

Two of these three are irretrievably destroyed. 

While rain over eastern Belgium brought some relief to firefighters, peeper further warned that the situation was far from over. 

This will take weeks, even months. The fire has eaten its way into the peat and continues to burn in some places even without oxygen. And you can't see it from the surface. And it can reignite in another spot that isn't even that far away. And that's why we have to monitor it for weeks to ensure no new fires break out and spread to the unburnt areas.

2:01

Authorities reported on the morning of August 17th that the fire had been contained in areas accessible to emergency crews. Overnight, however, the blaze continued to spread in areas inaccessible to crews on foot, although its expansion remained limited by more favorable winds and rainfall.

Around 600 residents evacuated earlier were still unable to return home while no new evacuations were planned for the time being. Several roads in and around the affected area remained closed due to traffic. 

2:36

At the same time, German media further reported that the fire was no longer spreading toward the border town of Monsha. About 30 residents there had been evacuated as a precaution on Sunday evening because of heavy smoke and the risk of the fire spreading further. According to regional officials, nearly 500 personnel and more than 120 vehicles were involved in firefighting operations on Monday with nine aircraft from Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Norway, and Sweden providing air support. The aerial operation was being coordinated by the European Union's Emergency Response Coordination Center. 

We managed to maintain the fire where the firemen are situated, but there's still a place which is totally inaccessible where the fire is still going on in the direction of Montau and Germany. 

3:30

Wildfires have ravaged areas in various European countries, forcing evacuations in France, Spain, Belgium, Germany, and Greece. Many European countries saw the hottest month on record in July with ongoing droughts exacerbating the problem.

4:16 - 8:27 FOOTAGE

END OF REPORT

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From VERTEX channel  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPAZwLDE2K8

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EARLIER TODAY

Thursday, August 20, 2026

w transcript Climate crisis hits USA everywhere all at once "Every single region in country is feeling" effects of global warming- Severe Weather USA channel Aug 19, Read and watch at Heating Planet blog

The Eternal journalist has been provoked to file another dispatch https://cityofangels25.blogspot.com/2026/08/climate-crisis-hits-usa-everywhere-all.html 

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