Firefighters from the East Limburg emergency zone worked until 10:00 on Sunday to extinguish smouldering flames at Hardy, a packaging materials company in Lanaken that had been ravaged by a major fire on Saturday afternoon.
The blaze destroyed a storage hall of 500 square metres, consuming approximately 2,000 tonnes of paper, cardboard, styrofoam, and three vintage cars.
A total of 120 firefighters from East Limburg, North Limburg, South-West Limburg, and Maastricht in Dutch Limburg battled the fire for hours. By Saturday evening, it was already clear that the cooling-down process would take considerable time, with a crane being used to pull apart rubble, paper, and cardboard to ensure complete extinguishment.
Lanaken’s mayor, Marino Keulen, stated that firefighters are now conducting hourly visual inspections to prevent a flare-up, although no new outbreaks are expected.
Meanwhile, the South Limburg safety region in the Netherlands issued a warning about fragments of solar panels that fell in the border area between Lanaken and Maastricht during and after the fire.
Residents in the affected area, which stretches from Zouwweg to the Belgian border and from Borgharen to Itteren between Pasestraat and the Meuse River, were advised to dispose of any solar panel remnants in household waste. Dutch authorities cautioned people to handle the fragments carefully because they could contain sharp edges. Using gloves and thoroughly washing hands afterwards was recommended.
Additionally, white and black soot particles were detected in a larger area spanning from the Lanaken-Maastricht border to Maastricht Aachen Airport (MAA). Residents were advised that these particles can be rinsed away with water, and they should wash fruits and vegetables thoroughly before consumption.
