Firefighters battle Steeg blaze as Tirol buys helicopter water bucket

Six fire brigades spent hours tackling a forest fire in Steeg, in the Reutte district, on Saturday, while Tirol’s state government approved the purchase of a helicopter water bucket, ORF reported.

A hiker raised the alarm at about 10 a.m. after seeing smoke rising from a forested area on the opposite slope. The fire was small but had broken out in terrain that was difficult to access.

Firefighters set up a shuttle operation using four vehicles to supply water. A police helicopter from Vorarlberg also arrived over the forest. According to Steeg fire brigade commander Benedikt Huber, it appears to have been alerted by mistake, but crews accepted and ultimately needed its assistance.

Several trees had to be felled so the helicopter could drop water on the fire. Firefighters suspect lightning from the previous days caused the blaze. Huber said it may have smouldered before the fire spread deep into the ground.

The fire was extinguished after four hours. No one was injured.

Separately, the state government approved the purchase of a firefighting container and a tank basin. The container, known as a Bambi Bucket, can hold almost 3,000 litres of water. It will be fitted to the Austrian armed forces’ Black Hawk helicopters in emergencies, particularly for fires in terrain that is difficult to reach. Until now, Tirol had to borrow such equipment from other states.