Turkey stands out in combating forest fires, data shows

ISTANBUL

Turkey was the most successful country in combatting forest fires in 2020 with an area of 6.2 hectares per fire, according to the European Forest Fire Information System data.

The area per fire in the U.S. was 68 hectares, and in Spain, it was 20.4 hectares, while this figure remained around 6.2 hectares in Turkey.

Considering these figures, Turkey has become the most successful country in combating forest fires.

Some 3,413 forest fires damaged an area of 20,938 hectares across Turkey last year, a senior official announced.

Bekir Karacabey, head of the General Directorate of Forestry, told state-run Anadolu Agency that more than 3,000 rural fires were extinguished by teams, preventing the loss of life and property of residents.

A large number of fire responders, technical staff and guard officers took part in combating forest fires last year, Karacabey noted.

In battling fires, water supply vehicles, first response vehicles, dozers, planes and helicopters were also used.

Unmanned aerial vehicles (drones), which were used for the first time in 2020, reduced the fire response time to 12 minutes, according to Karacabey.