More than 100 homes have been destroyed and hundreds of people have been forced to evacuate as a harrowing fire ripped through a residential area in southern Norway. The fire started burning since Friday, July 17, and has devoured a large residential area in Krokstadelva, Drammen, around 30 miles west of Oslo.
The horror blaze continued to rage overnight, when helicopters were forced to suspend their operations. Around 80 firefighters, Civil Defence crews and six firefighting helicopters have been deployed to battle the flames.
As the fire spread into the nearby forest, firefighters and the Civil Defence planned to tackle it from the south and extinguish it northwards, according to police incident commander Frode Presthus.
While the fire has destroyed dozens of homes, there were no immediate reports of missing persons.
Two casualties have been reported so far, with one being treated for minor smoke inhalation and one firefighter suffering minor injuries.
The cause of the fire was not immediately known.
Drammen mayor Kjell Arne Hermansen said: “A fire this big in Drammen, affecting so many residents, leaves you shocked. It’s important to follow the advice from the fire service and the police.
“Drammen Municipality has activated its crisis staff and crisis management. We’ve been working as a municipality, but this is a major fire affecting all of Drammen.”
Finn Roine, a resident of Drammen, said, as reported by Sky News: “I got a call from my daughter saying that three apartment blocks below her were on fire. A few minutes later, my son and I drove up here to see what was happening.
“When we got here it looked brighter because the fire was lower down, but it spread incredibly fast. Then we saw the flames take one row of houses after another. Then I saw my daughter’s house. It has burned down now, and it’s still burning. There are still flames there.”
One evacuee, Ronny Nordstad, recalled being told to leave their home, as reported by DR: “I had to grab a few things before evacuating. Then I saw the fire behind the house.”