Syrian fire in risk of spreading to Turkey

HATAY - Hürriyet Daily News

A forest fire is seen in Syrian land one kilometer from Turkish border. DHA photo

A fire that has broken out on the forested land in Syria’s Latakia province, and there is a risk of it spreading across the border to Turkey, a local official has said.

The fire is one kilometer from the Yayladağı district border and is approaching in the direction of Turkey, according to the officials. “Our efforts to extinguish the fire are progressing. We cannot approach the Syrian border, we are just trying to prevent the fire from crossing over onto our land,” Ayhan Bilgin, an official from the forest directorate of the Yayladağı district told the Hürriyet Daily News yesterday. “There is no intervention in the fire on the Syrian side” he added. Bilgin said a fire aisle had been opened on Turkish side, and that over twenty water-tenders, dozers and helicopters had been sent to Yayladağı. The strong wind is making the situation even more dangerous, he also said.