Over 1,800 people evacuated as wildfire spreads toward village in Germany's border with Belgium

BERLIN - Authorities in Germany ordered about 1,800 people to evacuate their homes in the early hours of Friday, after a wildfire in the western region spread towards a village close to the border with Belgium.

Residents should leave the village of Gey at once and go to an assistance centre set up at a primary school in the nearby village of Strass, municipality officials said in a statement at 4 a.m. (0200 GMT)

They were urged to carry only essential belongings, identification papers and necessary medicines.

On Thursday, authorities said a major emergency response was triggered by a wildfire affecting about 25 hectares (62 acres) of nearby woodland.

Firefighters and emergency services battled to restrain the flames, while the B399 road through the area was closed.

Large swathes of Germany are tackling dry conditions and high risks of forest fires, weather officials say.

The wider European continent, the world's fastest-warming, has been fighting an unusually active wildfire season, as a wetter winter ​fed growth ​in ⁠vegetation that dried out during rolling heatwaves.

-Writing by Friederike Heine; Editing by Clarence Fernandez/Reuters