Overview
- The Saurüsselkopf near Ruhpolding remains off-limits after police helicopters with thermal cameras found new smoldering pockets inside the mountain forest.
- Officials say heat is trapped inside thick trunks, rootstocks, and soil, which hides it from sensors until it reaches the surface and leaves some embers burning despite recent rain.
- Police are enforcing the entry ban on the 1,270‑meter peak, and local authorities warn of falling branches and unstable trees in the burn zone.
- In Carinthia’s Lesachtal, commanders declared “Brand aus” after a weather shift brought rain and snow, ending a 24‑day fight that burned about 110 hectares with no homes or farm buildings lost.
- The Lesachtal effort relied on nonstop police and army helicopter lifts that moved about 10 million liters of water, reinforcement by 320 disaster‑relief specialists, and drone thermal scans that guided crews who dug out embers by hand.