Forest fires are raging in Turkey. The holiday region of Antalya is affected. Several settlements, residential areas and a hospital are evacuated.
Manavgat (Turkey) – In the south of Turkey, the holiday region of Antalya, several serious forest fires have broken out. The prevailing wind pushed the fire towards the residential areas. Mustafa Yigit, the district administrator for the Manavgat district, told CNN Türk on Wednesday (29.07.2021.
Three residential areas and a hospital had to be evacuated. Several people complained of breathing difficulties, others are receiving medical treatment for burns. In several videos, the forest fires could be seen in the form of dark clouds of smoke and meter-high flames. Tourists are currently not at risk, said Yigit.
Turkey: Antalya holiday region affected by dangerous forest fires
The DHA news agency reported on the evacuated hospital: There people had to be brought to safety from the flames. In addition, a person is receiving medical treatment for severe burn injuries. Because of the heavy smoke development, respiratory problems are also to be expected. No deaths were initially reported.
The forest fires in Antalya are fought from the air and from the ground. Two fire-fighting aircraft and 15 helicopters are currently in use. The governor’s office informed about this. Agriculture Minister Bekir Pakdemirli, on the other hand, spoke of a fire-fighting aircraft, 19 helicopters, 108 vehicles and around 400 employees.
Forest fires in Turkey: “We have never seen anything like it”
“The fire has spread to the city center. It grows even more with the wind. We cannot determine the extent of the damage; there is damage in the villages too. We have never seen anything like it, ”said the mayor of Manavgat, Şükrü Sözen, to the Habertürk broadcaster about the forest fires in the region.
| County seat | Manavgat |
|---|---|
| province | Antalya |
| population | approx. 215,526 |
| Mayor | Şükrü Sözen |
Reinforcements from other provinces have been requested, said Yigit. The Turkish disaster management agency AFAD also announced that emergency teams had been called from other provinces. The particularly endangered settlements near the forest are evacuated.
The cause of the fires was initially unclear. One reason could be the extreme weather conditions in the region. Something similar happened in forest fires in Russia, Canada and the USA. In Turkey, flash floods had recently also occurred in the Black Sea provinces of Rize and Artvin (jey / dpa / reuters)
Headline list image: © Cevin Dettlaff / dpa
