The scorched landscape of Ot-Fan: what a sight tourists found after the fire
Hikers in the Ot Fan Nature Reserve were confronted with the aftermath of a recent fire. Hikers who took their usual walking routes found the landscape devastated by flames.
The fire significantly damaged vegetation and dramatically changed the landscape, turning popular open spaces into charred wastelands.
Source: Hautes Fagnes : les promeneurs retrouvent un paysage dévasté par les flammes - RTL Info
Context
The Hautes Fagnes nature reserve in eastern Belgium encompasses unique upland peatlands and heathlands at an altitude of over 600 metres above sea level. Due to the vulnerability of the soil, movement through the massif is strictly regulated: most tourist routes are laid exclusively with wooden decks, from which it is forbidden to descend. Peat layers are very sensitive to drought and fire, and underground decay in them can last for weeks, which significantly complicates the restoration of the original landscape.