Successive fires erupt in Ankara woodland, Çanakkale memorial park

ANKARA / ÇANAKKALE

The largest of the fires erupted in a forested area belonging to the Middle Eastern Technical University (ODTÜ), near Ankara's city center, on the afternoon of July 26. AA photo

Successive fires broke out across Turkey on July 26, threatening residential areas and national heritage sites.

The largest of the fires erupted in a forested area belonging to the Middle Eastern Technical University (ODTÜ), near Ankara's city center, on the afternoon of July 26.

Firefighters dispatched to the area were able to bring the flames under control within two hours, but around 10 decares of forested land were reduced to ashes by the time the fire was quelled, Anadolu Agency reported.

The forested area is located in Ankara's Çankaya district, and also includes Lake Eymir, one of the main weekend getaways for residents. Smoke could be seen from the main arteries surrounding the wood. 

No official statement has yet been released as to the cause of the fire.

Another fire broke out at around 4 p.m. in Çanakkale, a few hundred meters away from the Gelibolu National Park, which encircles the Martyrs' Memorial dedicated to soldiers who participated in the Çanakkale battles of 1915.

Soldiers guarding the memorial made the first intervention into the fire, before helicopters and water trucks were dispatched to the area.

Earlier, another fire in Manavgat, in the southern province of Antalya, reduced around six hectares of forested land to ashes.