Forest fires grip 3 provinces for 2nd consecutive day

ISTANBUL

Large-scale forest fires are ravaging the southern provinces of Hatay and Mersin and the northwestern city of Çanakkale, as firefighting teams continue their extensive efforts to extinguish the fires for the second consecutive day.

As Türkiye, like the rest of the world, is recently experiencing record-breaking temperatures and heatwaves, teams are facing prolonged battles with numerous forest fires.

While teams are on high alert and intervening in new fires almost every day, on July 16 alone, 19 wildfires broke out, of which 16 were brought under control.

According to local media reports, the fire that engulfed a vast area in Hatay's Belen district occurred around 2 p.m., when two men sparked the flames while attempting to clear reeds in their garden.

The residents of Müfti, Soğukoluk and Benlidere neighborhoods were evacuated as the fire spread rapidly, fueled by strong winds.

Some 450 personnel of the General Directorate of Forestry, civil servants in other public institutions and organizations, and the locals in the region continue to work on the second day to extinguish the fire.

On July 17 morning, planes and other helicopters also participated in the air intervention, which continued with a night vision helicopter.

Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya and Agriculture and Forestry Minister Ibrahim Yumaklı visited the fire area ravaged by fire late on July 16 and inspected the work on-site.

Yerlikaya also announced that the two individuals responsible for the occurrence of the fire in Hatay were arrested.

“Tremendous efforts are being made to prevent the fire from spreading further. We have been closely monitoring the situation, including aerial footage captured by armed drones. We hope that the energy of this fire, which has slightly diminished, will be extinguished as soon as possible. A significant endeavor is underway in this direction,” Yerlikaya stated.

Seven houses and four vehicles are damaged, whereas the scale of the damaged forest area has not been determined yet.

Simultaneously, teams also combat a wildfire through air and ground interventions in Mersin's Gülnar district.

The fire broke out in Gülnar's Kavakoluğu neighborhood at around 4:50 p.m. on July 16, spreading to wider areas.

The response continued throughout the night, resulting in the evacuation of 373 homes, with five houses already reduced to ashes, Mersin Governor Ali Hamza Pehlivan announced.

A high school’s hostel has been allocated for the accommodation needs of evacuated residents, Pehlivan added.

In the meantime, in Çanakkale, another forest fire that erupted nearly at the same time as the one in Mersin remains uncontrolled after 20 hours.

The first response came 11 minutes after the fire broke out with 12 aircraft.