The heather fire started on Saturday afternoon, and for a long time there was a danger of it spreading to buildings. 27 people had to leave their homes. A total of 30 houses were evacuated, and the flames were as close as 50–100 meters away from the buildings. On Sunday morning, the fire service said they had it under control. Can move home At 1 pm on Sunday, the police in Trøndelag held a press conference about the latest news. Here, the mayor of Åfjord, Vibeke Stjern, said that the evacuees can move home. – We are so grateful for the effort that has been put in. – Having a community on fire and emergency preparedness, with a drone that comes from Trondheim in addition to the Civil Defense, the Red Cross and not least the people who stand up as they do – it’s absolutely fantastic to sit and watch. See the press conference about the heather fire here. On Sunday morning, a forest fire helicopter also arrived at the scene. The mayor describes the effort as an example to follow. Shooting may be the cause. At the same time, Stjern feels compelled to urge people to be careful now that it is so dry. – Here it was a tiny spark that caused it all. It takes so terribly little. What she is referring to is that a man who was shooting in the area has taken the blame for starting the fire. Bjørn Nordaune tells Adresseavisen that he was only going to practice shooting with his son when they spotted flames not far from the flash. – We have noted the statements, and are including them in the investigation. It is a strong hypothesis that there is a connection, says police station chief in Fosen, Hallgeir Stjern, to news. Was evacuated Ove Viken is one of those who were evacuated due to the fire, and who are now allowed to move back home. On Saturday afternoon, he called 110 when he saw the flames just a few hundred meters from the living room window. – It wasn’t such a big fire, but it quickly took off because of the wind, he describes. This is how it looked on Saturday night. Photo: Ingrid Lindgaard Stranden / news – I was terrified. I remember the fires in Flatanger and on Frøya, and it was excruciating to think about. Viken is well known in the area where he has lived since 1987. He describes the terrain as steep and dry. Worse conditions feared Operations leader for the fire service, Per Ove Johansen, confirms in the press conference that the terrain was demanding. – The crew has made a formidable effort. One is that it is steep and dark, but the other is that there has been incredibly strong wind, he says. Per Ove Johansen, emergency manager in the fire service. Photo: Ingrid Lindgaard Stranden / news He believes this shows the great effort people want to put in to end up in the happy situation they are in now. – Many have performed beyond what we can expect, he says, who was early on in thinking that this could be as dramatic as in Flatanger in 2014. – We were quite early in thinking along those lines. Especially with the drought we are experiencing now, in combination with the wind. We were clear early on that we wanted to scale up. The forest fire helicopter found no trace of a smoldering fire on Sunday. – Based on the development that has taken place, we are reasonably confident that it will be fine. At the same time, we will not let it go completely, and will continue with guarding, says the task leader. A new assessment will be made on Sunday evening. Were afraid All the evacuees were sent to the Julie Næss yard in Roan. Most of these sought out private accommodation, after registering at the Julie Næss yard. Some residents received accommodation and meals in local care homes, run by the municipality. Just after 15 on Saturday, the report about the fire came. Photo: Tips – How was the atmosphere? – Not good. There were several people crying in the yard, and it was excruciating, says Ove Viken. – I wasn’t that tall in the hat myself either. I was terrified, and slept badly last night. Viken is clearly moved when he talks about what they all feared was that the fire would reach the building. – But it’s going well now, he smiles.
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