In view of the complicated risk management at the Berlin explosive site that caught fire, the fire brigade uses state-of-the-art and expensive technology from a wide variety of organizations.
Fire chief Karsten Homrighausen spoke on Friday of remote-controlled robots and armored vehicles that would drive to explore, extinguish and cool the up to 700-degree hot site full of ammunition, bombs and fireworks. There would also be aerial reconnaissance with a helicopter and drones, which would provide photos and infrared images to identify hot spots.
Homrighausen spoke of a lengthy process in which the temperature of the heated ammunition was repeatedly measured with a "remote thermometer". This is the only way the fire brigade can decide where cooling water, which is pumped through hoses from the Havel three kilometers away, is needed. "Just sticking water on it to extinguish the bombs isn't always the solution either." The explosives experts would certainly advise caution.
At the same time, water cannons from the police from Berlin, Brandenburg and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania are on the move in the forest. From aisles cut through the forest by a armored recovery vehicle, they spray the undergrowth and bushes to prevent the fire from flaring up again.
