Queen Silvia of Sweden visits Belgian wildfire front lines

Queen Silvia of Sweden conducted a private visit to the High Fens region in Belgium to meet with Swedish firefighting crews deployed to combat the country’s largest recorded wildfire. The blaze, which began in mid-August, has burned approximately 3,000 hectares and forced the evacuation of roughly 600 people from Waimes and Bütgenbach.

During her visit, the 82-year-old Queen boarded one of the Swedish water-bombing aircraft to speak directly with the crews about their equipment and mission operations. Sweden provided these aircraft as part of the European Union’s Civil Protection Mechanism, joining reinforcements from the Netherlands and the Czech Republic. While the Royal House noted the visit was private and the Queen was already in the region, her presence at the front lines provided direct engagement with the international teams working to contain the fire near the German border.