800 firefighters battle fire in German National Park

Berlin 8th August : About 800 emergency personnel were fighting an engulfing forest fire in Germanys Saxon Switzerland National Park on Monday with little improvement in sight.

"The flames are in an area that is manageable however, flames are rising out of the ground.

" DPA news agency stated Thomas Kunz of the district administration office as saying "The high temperatures that can reach 30 degrees Celsius ensure that the amount (of workers) essential because its an extremely intense physical activity," Kunz said.The hard and dry ground must be sifted with spades and hoes in order to get rid of the pockets of sparks, he said.

As of now it appears that the operation will remain at this point until the close of the week.The use of circular sprinklers that irrigate more areas and smother flames, has proved to be effective, but they are only installed in clearings.

Due to the intense sun the water evaporates rapidly and it may not get deep enough into soil layers Kunz said.According to the German Weather Service, no rain is forecast throughout the week.

Fire fighters in Berlin were trying to put out a fire in Berlins Grunewald forest which began to spread just four days ago as a result of an explosion that occurred at a nearby blasting site.