Sawt Falasteen - Belgium's fire of the century now 'under control'

"At this stage, the fire is now under control in its entirety and should no longer spread," barring a major change in weather conditions or other unforeseen factors, said the local governor's office.

The High Fens fire mushroomed over the weekend to half the size of Manhattan -- 3,000 hectares (7,500 acres) -- charring a huge expanse of peatland, pine trees and hiking trails.

Firefighters wrestled "numerous flare-ups" under control overnight, working in very difficult conditions as powerful winds buffeted the eastern region bordering Germany -- with a "mini-tornado" even striking a town outside the park.

But the governor's office said the fire was now fully contained on its western side, with operations continuing to the east to finish the job.

Seven aircraft from Germany, Norway, Belgium and Sweden were carrying out water drops in and around the burned perimeter where ground temperatures remained "extremely high".

Aerial support crews, grounded by bad weather earlier in the week, hoped to keep operating until nightfall, when civil protection drones would take over the task of monitoring for "potential flare-ups," the governor's statement said.

Even once under control, officials have warned it will take weeks or even months of soaking and dousing to prevent the High Fens blaze from reigniting.

Around 350 firefighters and other emergency personnel remain deployed in the effort, as do the many farmers who mobilised in support of the operation since last week.

But authorities have lifted all evacuation orders in the border region since Wednesday, allowing the residents of several Belgian hamlets and a town on the German border to return home.

Germany's contingent of firefighters will start pulling out later Thursday, to be offset with Belgian firefighters including volunteers, the governor's office said.

Europe has been swept by weeks of devastating wildfires fuelled by dry conditions and a historically hot summer, with France, Greece, Portugal and Spain also battling major blazes.

Tackling the High Fens fire was made much harder by the fens' terrain -- a patchwork of heath, peat bogs and raised wooden boardwalks.

The blaze broke out for reasons still unknown in an area that was ravaged by massive fires in 1911, during a similar period of heatwaves.

It was the country's largest wildfire since.

W.Mansour--SF-PST