Rathen (dpa/sn) – After the forest fire at the beginning of the week, the bastion in Rathen, the symbol of Saxon Switzerland, is fully accessible again. “The Bastei Bridge is freely accessible and the fire brigades have moved away,” said Hanspeter Mayer, spokesman for the national park administration, on Friday on request. Rain on Thursday did little to ease the situation. “The smell of burning can still be smelled clearly on the bastion. The National Park Guard is still checking the area at regular intervals.” Since Thursday noon, however, no embers have been found.
Out of concern that forest fires would flare up again, the district office in Pirna had issued a forest closure for the Saxon Switzerland-Eastern Ore Mountains district. Accordingly, the forest may no longer be entered between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m., and leaving the forest paths during the day is prohibited. District Administrator Michael Geisler (CDU) appealed to reason, to comply with the rules and to be careful.
After the fire below the bastion in Rathen, the police are still looking for witnesses who saw a wine-red van with a Danish number plate shortly before the fire broke out. It is said to have had several occupants and was the last vehicle in the parking lot.
The fire broke out on Monday night and spread over an area of ??around 2500 square meters, more than 100 firefighters were on duty. The police are investigating arson.
