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Wildfires have ravaged Poland's largest nature reserve, the Biebrza National Park, as the country deals with its worst drought in years.
The blaze first struck on Sunday, spreading across10 percent of the park, which has some of Europe's most well-preserved wetlands and is home to moose, beavers, wolves and rare birds.
The environment ministry said it believes illegal grass burning was partially to blame for the fire. The situation was further worsened by strong winds and drought.
On Wednesday, local firefighters ran to the blaze on foot with shovels.
"It's a great tragedy... Usually at this time of year, everything is under water. I spoke to a firefighter who said they've never dealt with anything like this before" local resident Joanna Skrzypkowska told AFP.
"They're fighting really hard... they didn't sleep for three nights, just battled the fires, before help arrives"
Firefighters and emergency services have since been supported by colleagues from nearby cities. Planes and helicopters, which are able to cover greater areas of land, have also been brought in to help put out the fires, which are starting to abate and have not reached forests.
President Andrzej Duda called on citizens to be reasonable about their water use and expressed fears about the impact of the drought: "Without rain, we could be in danger."
Source(s): AFP
