Local government officials in Froland said they can't handle the bill, estimated at NOK 60 million (USD 12 million), alone.
"We have absolutely no possibility of handling this cost on our own," Froland mayor Sigurd Pedersen told newspaper Aftenposten. "Without support from the state, the township will technically go bankrupt."
The state was relatively quick to ride to the rescue, however. The government minister in charge of municipal governments said Monday that the state would pick up nearly all the bill for the firefighting effort, and that Froland "would not go bankrupt."
The fire destroyed around 30,000 mål (7,500 acres, or 3,000 hectares) before it finally was brought under control. Long-awaited rain over the weekend helped firefighters, but they continued to monitor the area on Monday, in case new fires sparked back to life.
The monitoring efforts can go on for several weeks, and people were still being told to stay out of the forested areas where the fire raged. Resident of local towns and villages like Mykland, however, could return home.
Some homes were damaged by smoke and soot, but none burned down and no lives were lost in the fire, the biggest to hit Norway in decades. As many as 20 holiday cabins, however, were destroyed.
Damage estimates were set at NOK 80 million for property and timber losses. More than 150 firefighters battled the blaze, aided by 16 helicopters.
