- Kohli blasts century as India declare against Australia
- Verstappen 'never thought' he'd win four world titles
- Former Masters champion Reed wins Hong Kong Open
- Awesome foursomes: Formula One's exclusive club of four-time world champions
- Smylie beats 'idol' Cameron Smith to win Australian PGA Championship
- Five key races in Max Verstappen's 2024 title season
- Max Verstappen: Young, gifted and single-minded four-time F1 champion
- 'Star is born': From homeless to Test hero for India's Jaiswal
- Verstappen wins fourth consecutive Formula One world title
- Survivors, sniffing dogs join anti-mine march at Cambodia's Angkor Wat
- Far right eye breakthrough in Romania presidential vote
- Jaiswal slams majestic 161 but Australia fight back in Perth
- Edinburgh's alternative tour guides show 'more real' side of city
- IPL teams set to splash the cash at 'mega-auction' in Saudi Arabia
- Olympics in India a 'dream' facing many hurdles
- Wounded Bangladesh protesters receive robotic helping hand
- Majestic Jaiswal 141 not out as India pile pain on Australia
- Giannis, Lillard lead Bucks over Hornets as Spurs beat Warriors
- Juan Mata agent slammed as 'cowardly' by angry A-League coach
- Marta inspires Orlando Pride to NWSL title
- Palestinian pottery sees revival in war-ravaged Gaza
- Main points of the $300 billion climate deal
- Robertson wants policy change for overseas-based All Blacks
- Israel retreat helps rescuers heal from October 7 attack
- Afghan women turn to entrepreneurship under Taliban
- Mounting economic costs of India's killer smog
- At climate talks, painstaking diplomacy and then anger
- Uruguayans head to polls with left hoping for comeback
- Trump's mass deportation plan could end up hurting economic growth
- Iran director in exile says 'bittersweet' to rep Germany at Oscars
- US consumers to bargain hunt in annual 'Black Friday' spree
- Cheers, angst as US nuclear plant Three Mile Island to reopen
- Scientists seek miracle pill to stop methane cow burps
- Australia ditches plans to fine tech giants for misinformation
- Developing nations slam 'paltry' $300 bn climate deal
- Red Bulls win 'Hudson River derby' to reach conference final
- Neuville wins world title after Tanak crashes at Rally Japan
- Neuville wins world rally title after Tanak crashes in Japan
- Colapinto cleared for Las Vegas GP despite heavy crash
- 'Smiling One' Amorim vows he has ruthless streak Man Utd need
- Marseille down Lens to stay in touch with Ligue 1 leaders, Lyon draw
- New Zealand beat 'proud' Italy in Cane's Test farewell
- Barca collapse in Celta draw without Yamal, Simeone hits milestone
- Thailand's Jeeno equals Yin for lead at LPGA Tour Championship
- New Zealand beat Italy in Cane's Test farewell
- Marseille down Lens to stay in touch with Ligue 1 leaders, Lyon held to draw
- Liga leaders Barca suffer late collapse in Celta draw
- Retegui fires Atalanta top of Serie A ahead of Inter
- Greaves hits maiden Test century as West Indies dominate Bangladesh
- Venezuela opposition calls for mass anti-Maduro protest on Dec. 1
Blasts ring out as fires rage in Berlin forest
A huge fire broke out Thursday in a popular forest in western Berlin next to a police munitions storage site, sending plumes of smoke into the skies and setting off intermittent explosions.
The army sent in a tank aimed at evacuating munitions at the affected storage site as well as remote-controlled de-mining robots, while drones were circling the air to help assess the emergency.
The situation is "extremely extraordinary with munitions," said Berlin fire brigade spokesman Thomas Kirstein, adding that it was "under control and there was no danger for Berliners."
The fire was however expected to last for some time, he said.
Firefighters called to the site in the middle of the night were confronted with intermittent blasts that sent debris flying and hindered their work.
They have so far been able to begin tackling only two of the four hotspots across the affected area of 15,000 square metres (161,500 square feet), as explosions at the munitions store were still rocking the area.
No one has been hurt by the fires, which came on a day when a new heatwave was due to envelop Germany.
Officials have built a security cordon to allow firefighters to start working around a kilometre from the ammunition storage zone.
The store holds munitions uncovered by police, but also unexploded World War 2-era ordnance which is regularly dug up during construction works.
Police said they were investigating what set off the fire.
Authorities appealed for the public to avoid the forest, popular with both locals and tourists, as several regional rail lines have been halted.
But authorities said no firefighting choppers were available as they were already in use to calm forest fires in eastern Germany.
- Heatwave -
The German capital is rarely hit by forest fires, even though its 29,000 hectares of forests make it one of the greenest cities in the world.
Brandenburg, the region surrounding Berlin, as well as parts of eastern Germany have for days been battling forest fires.
Scientists say climate change is making heatwaves around the world more frequent and more intense, which increases the risk of fires.
Temperatures are expected to climb as high as 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) across parts of Germany on Thursday. In Berlin, they are predicted to reach 38C.
After a scorching Thursday, heavy thunderstorms are due to sweep into the country from the west on Friday, the German weather service said.
A cold front is predicted to bring temperatures down by more than 10 degrees overnight in western Germany, falling to around 20-25 degrees on Friday.
P.Anderson--BTB