The fire broke out on Friday at around 3:30 PM local time (4:30 PM Lithuanian time) in a townhouse in the city of Drammen, officials said.
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Soon the fire spread across the area and jumped to nearby forests. On Saturday morning, firefighters continued their work to control the flames. It is reported that about 80 firefighters, civil protection crews, and six firefighting helicopters are trying to extinguish the fire sources.
At night, helicopters were forced to stop operations, so the fire had to be fought only by ground teams.
Norwegian public broadcaster NRK reported that hundreds of people have moved to an evacuation center.
According to the police, there are no reports of missing residents. It is still unclear what caused the fire.
“It spread incredibly fast”
Finn Roine, a resident of Drammen, a town located 34 km southwest of Oslo, said: “My daughter called me and said that three apartment buildings below her flat were on fire. A few minutes later, my son and I came here to see what was happening.”
“When we arrived, it seemed that the flames were shining brighter because the fire was below, but it spread incredibly fast. Then we saw the flames engulfing one row of houses after another. After that, I saw my daughter’s house. It was still burning. The flames are still visible there,” the witness told SkyNews TV.
Police operations chief Frode Presthus noted that the fire is spreading deeper into the forest, so it has become a larger forest fire moving south.
“The plan is for firefighters together with civil defense to meet the forest fire from the south and extinguish it moving northward, approaching the fire. That is exactly what they are trying to do now. But, as I said, the fire is still uncontrolled. It is still spreading,” F. Roine reported.
Weather conditions, especially the wind, remain the main concern, and authorities said they expect to control the fire on Saturday.
One person was treated for minor smoke inhalation, and one firefighter suffered minor injuries.
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