Mysterious fire in Tscheltsch: Six fire departments in large-scale operation!

Mysterious fire in Tscheltsch: Six fire departments in large-scale operation!

Yesterday, November 24th, 2025, the fire departments in Tscheltsch near Liesing in the Lesachtal were alerted to a fire in a machine hall. When the Liesing fire department arrived, thick smoke was already coming from the building, where an agricultural tractor was fully engulfed in flames. The fire presented the emergency services with particular challenges because a photovoltaic system (PV system) was located in the immediate vicinity.

In order to fight the fire, the emergency services first had to disconnect the PV system from the grid. This demanding measure was necessary before extinguishing measures could begin in order to avoid dangers caused by electrical voltages and potential arcs. In order to open the garage, the door had to be forcibly removed because the heat had rendered it unusable. The burning tractor was finally pulled out of the hall with the help of a tractor in order to extinguish it in the open air.

Coordinated intervention by fire departments

A total of six fire departments were deployed, including the Liesing, Birnbaum, St. Lorenzen im Lesachtal, Maria Luggau, St. Jakob im Lesachtal fire departments and three East Tyrolean fire departments (Obertilliach, Kartitsch, Sillian). Together they built a feeder pipeline over 1,200 meters long to secure the fire-fighting water supply. The rapid and coordinated intervention of the emergency services prevented the fire from spreading to the entire machine hall and was therefore able to avert major material damage. Around 100 firefighters and nine vehicles were mobilized

Caution is the key, and this is especially true when it comes to fires in connection with photovoltaic systems. In the event of a fire, these systems pose specific challenges for fire departments and rescue workers, as fab-rheinland reports. High electrical voltages and the possibility of falling objects can pose serious risks. For this reason, targeted use is important to minimize risks. Fires often occur due to material defects or improper handling of such systems.

Firefighting Considerations

PV experts recommend ensuring that safety distances from live parts are maintained during use. Special extinguishing techniques are also required, for example the distances should be taken into account when using CM jet pipes. As a rule, water is the main extinguishing agent, while foam agents may only be used in tension-free areas.

The exact causes of the fire and the material damage caused by the incident are still unknown. The police were also on site to monitor the situation. Another report by Matthias Warmuth explains further developments.

How the situation with fires in PV systems could be improved in the future remains an exciting question, especially in view of the constantly increasing number of such systems, which has reached around 1.7 million in Germany alone, as Feuerwehrmagazin states. The dangers associated with building fires are increasing, and it is important that both firefighters and PV system operators are well trained to act correctly in an emergency.