Undergrowth on fire

Mysterious smoke development at Plabutsch in Graz

The police helicopter flew over the area.

(Bild: zVg)

There was excitement on Monday afternoon about a large smoke development on the Plabutsch in Graz near the tunnel's ventilation system. The police helicopter flew over the area. Numerous local residents reported their concerns to the "Krone". The all-clear was given at 6.30 pm.

There was great excitement among local residents when clouds of smoke appeared on the Plabutsch in Graz on Monday afternoon. The heat of the past few days had caused severe drought, and many feared a forest fire or even a fire in the tunnel because the smoke appeared very close to the ventilation system of the Plabutsch tunnel.

Police were able to rule out a catastrophe
However, the police, who flew over the area as part of another operation, were able to rule out a major disaster. They could see smoke, but no fire, the police explained.

The Graz professional fire department made its way to the affected area: "We can give the all-clear," said a fire department spokesperson in the early evening: "The most spectacular part of the operation was the search for the place where the smoke was coming from." Over an area of around 1,000 square meters, undergrowth had caught fire between two forest paths, but was mainly responsible for the smoke. "We were unable to determine a specific cause of the fire," said the fire department.