Dutch military must adjust protocols, mayor says after 4 wildfires on training grounds

The Ministry of Defense underestimates the risk of wildfires and must tighten its protocols, Mayor René Verhulst of Ede said on EenVandaag after four wildfires on military training grounds in less than a week.

Last year in Ede, 76 hectares of heathland were lost in a fire started by a training grenade during a military exercise. The fire was so large that it prompted the Netherlands to create a national wildfire risk center. There was a fire at the same site last week, also after military training, but the cause is still under investigation.

This week, three of six wildfires were on military training grounds. A massive fire broke out at the training ground near ‘t Harde on Wednesday. Firefighters are still struggling to get it under control. And on Thursday, fires broke out on military training grounds near Weert and Oirschot. The fire brigade is overextended to the point that the Netherlands has had to ask for European help for the first time in history.

The Weert fire forced the evacuation of Kempen Airport and the Budel Asylum Shelter. The airport has been warning the Ministry of Defense that the risk of wildfires is high for months, with the last warning going out on Wednesday afternoon, a spokesperson told Omroep Brabant.

“We’ve been telling Defense for months that things could go wrong,” the spokesperson said. And instead of taking appropriate measures, the military has been training much more frequently and intensively. “Training is regularly conducted with hand grenades, explosives, and flares, and bullets are fired. This can cause fire. We have been worried for months.”

Mayor Verhulst of Ede thinks it is time for the Ministry of Defense to give heed to these warnings. “I think the risk is so high that on days like this, you don’t practice on heath and grass and the like, but in a place where it might actually be possible,” he told EenVandaag. “The heath is no longer the heath of 5 or 6 years ago. Much more grass, moss grows there; you can compare that to a ceiling with decorations in a nightclub. It caches fire just like that.”

In the short term, the mayor thinks Defense should focus on increasing its firefighting capacity. Firefighting vehicles nearby could make a whole lot of difference when a practice grenade starts a wildfire, like what happened in Ede last year.

Also, consult with the local authorities, Verhulst urged the Ministry. “We cannot explain to our residents - but also campsites and various institutions - that they must take all kinds of measures in the context of wildfire prevention, while such an enormous risk exists and Defense is conducting exercises.”

“We have seen what happened last year, last week, and now in Nunspeet and the surrounding area… That entails so much; the fire brigade needs to go there en masse,” the Mayor said. “Tighten your protocols, talk to us, and ensure firefighting capacity.”

Commander of the Armed Forces Onno Eichelsheim said on Thursday that military exercises will not be halted, despite the wildfires. But the military will take extra measures due to the drought. For example, nothing will generate heat during the training exercises. The military will also investigate whether protocols need to change to accommodate the changing natural landscape due to climate change.