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Kuwait Times
a day ago
- Climate
- Kuwait Times
Turkey battles wildfires amid winds, heatwave
ISTANBUL: Firefighters battled blazes across Turkey on Monday, as the country sweltered in a summer heatwave, officials said. Wildfires over the past week have led to at least 14 deaths in Turkey and sparked the evacuations of 19 villages and more than 3,500 people elsewhere from their homes. Turkey's latest heatwave peaked with temperatures above 40C across much of the country last week and even reached a record 50.5C on Friday in the far southeast, in Silopi, near the Iraqi and Syrian borders. Firefighters battled blazes around the city of Bursa in the northwest, the Karabuk region in the north and the Kahramanmaras region in the south. 'Five fires have been brought under control in four provinces,' said Agriculture and Forestry minister Ibrahim Yumakli. But he said the efforts were hampered by strong winds that are fanning the flames. 'Given the size and intensity of the fires, the state's ability to respond quickly to such disasters is sometimes limited,' he said. 'If there is wind, there are no planes and it takes hours, even days, for you to take control,' he said. In recent days, 19 villages had to be evacuated in the Safranbolu region in the north, and more than 3,500 people around Bursa. A firefighter battling the flames died of a heart attack on Saturday. Three more people died Sunday in an accident involving a water tanker truck that was used to battle a blaze, the Bursa governorate announced. On Wednesday, a wildfire killed at least 10 forest workers and rescuers fighting a blaze near Eskisehir in western Turkey. Across the Aegean Sea in Greece, where blazes have ravaged homes and sparked evacuations across the country this summer, firefighters on Monday worked to contain outbreaks after bringing dozens under control over the weekend. 'For the moment, we don't have an active outbreak, just a few disparate outbreaks,' an official with the firefighters in Athens told AFP on Monday. A heatwave that has gripped the country eased on Monday, but authorities maintained a heightened alert in several regions. Over the weekend, 55 new fires erupted across the country, though all but five were brought under control. Greece has endured heatwave conditions for a week, with temperatures passing 40C degrees (104 degrees Fahrenheit) in many areas. – AFP
United News of India
2 days ago
- Climate
- United News of India
2 major wildfires force mass evacuations in Türkiye
Istanbul July 27 (UNI)Two major wildfires in northwestern and northern Türkiye triggered mass evacuations on Saturday, with strong winds pushing flames toward residential areas and trapping vehicles on engulfed roads, local authorities said. In Bursa province, an uncontrolled blaze between Kestel and Gursu districts spread rapidly toward villages, forcing evacuations. Online videos showed residents fleeing on foot as fire engulfed a main roadway, briefly stranding vehicles including civilian aid cars. Meanwhile, a blaze that began on Thursday in Karabuk province remained uncontained, prompting precautionary evacuation of nearly 20 villages. Authorities closed the Ankara-Karabuk highway as residents attempted to relocate livestock from danger zones. Turkish Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Ibrahim Yumakli confirmed on Saturday 76 active fires nationwide -- 28 forested and 48 rural, citing extreme heat and "very high risk" conditions. He said firefighting teams will continue night operations. Temperatures reached 38 degrees Celsius in Bursa and 37 degrees Celsius in Karabuk on Saturday, with forecasts predicting even higher temperatures over the next two days. UNI XINHUA RKM
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First Post
2 days ago
- Climate
- First Post
Turkey battles raging wildfires as record heat prompts mass evacuations
Firefighters battled wildfires across Turkey on Sunday amid a searing Mediterranean heatwave, with authorities evacuating more than 3,600 people from settlements in two provinces. read more A wildfire rages across a forested area near Cavuslar village, in Karabuk district, northwest Turkey, Wednesday, July 23, 2025. (Ridvan Bostanci/IHA via AP) Firefighters in Turkey continued to battle multiple wildfires on Sunday as a blistering Mediterranean heatwave forced the evacuation of over 3,600 residents across several provinces. The blazes, fuelled by record-breaking temperatures erupted in the southern regions of Mersin and Antalya and the central province of Usak, with officials reporting that these fires were largely under control. However, fires still raged in the northwestern province of Bursa and the northern province of Karabuk, Agriculture and Forestry Minister Ibrahim Yumakli said during a press briefing. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD A major fire ignited Saturday in the forested areas between Gursu and Kestel districts in Bursa, a region central to Turkey's automobile industry. The blaze forced a temporary closure of a highway linking Istanbul with the western city of Izmir on Saturday night. Videos showed towering flames consuming trees near residential areas in Bursa, with thick plumes of smoke blanketing the skies. Authorities evacuated around 1,765 people from Kestel district as more than 2,000 firefighters, aided by six planes and four helicopters, worked to contain the spread. In the northern province of Karabuk, where a large wildfire has been burning for five days, 1,839 people in 19 villages were evacuated, Yumakli said. Three planes and 16 helicopters are tackling the blazes in the area amid difficult conditions, he added. 'We are going through risky times. This does not seem likely to end in two or three days,' Yumakli said, referring to the heat-wave. Temperatures in several regions in Turkey were forecast to reach over 40 degrees Celsius on Sunday, 6 to 12 degrees above seasonal norms, Turkey's meteorological service said, as thermometers hit 50 degrees Celsius in the country's southeast on Saturday for the first time in recorded history.
Hans India
3 days ago
- Climate
- Hans India
Two major wildfires force mass evacuations in Turkey
Istanbul: Two major wildfires in northwestern and northern Turkey triggered mass evacuations, with strong winds pushing flames toward residential areas and trapping vehicles on engulfed roads, local authorities said. In Bursa province, an uncontrolled blaze between Kestel and Gursu districts spread rapidly toward villages, forcing evacuations. Online videos showed residents fleeing on foot as fire engulfed a main roadway, briefly stranding vehicles including civilian aid cars. Meanwhile, a blaze that began on Thursday in Karabuk province remained uncontained, prompting precautionary evacuation of nearly 20 villages. Authorities closed the Ankara-Karabuk highway as residents attempted to relocate livestock from danger zones, Xinhua news agency reported. Turkish Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Ibrahim Yumakli confirmed on Saturday 76 active fires nationwide -- 28 forested and 48 rural, citing extreme heat and "very high risk" conditions. He said firefighting teams will continue night operations. Temperatures reached 38 degrees Celsius in Bursa and 37 degrees Celsius in Karabuk on Saturday, with forecasts predicting even higher temperatures over the next two days. On July 23, ten firefighters died and 14 others were injured when trying to extinguish a forest fire in Turkey's central province of Eskisehir. "We lost 10 lives, five forest workers and five Search and Rescue Association volunteers," Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya announced on social media platform X. Yerlikaya said the 14 injured are currently in hospital for treatment. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed sorrow over the loss and promised compensation for their families. Firefighting teams were working to extinguish flames in the western and central provinces of Sakarya, Antalya, Eskisehir, Bilecik and Denizli, the semi-official Anadolu Agency reported earlier in the day. Turkey's Agriculture and Forestry Minister Ibrahim Yumakli told reporters that the total number of fires since the beginning of the year has exceeded 4,000, with 1,728 occurring in forested areas. He warned of the growing threat of these fires as temperatures soar across the country.
The Star
3 days ago
- Climate
- The Star
2 major wildfires force mass evacuations in Türkiye
ISTANBUL, July 26 (Xinhua) -- Two major wildfires in northwestern and northern Türkiye triggered mass evacuations on Saturday, with strong winds pushing flames toward residential areas and trapping vehicles on engulfed roads, local authorities said. In Bursa province, an uncontrolled blaze between Kestel and Gursu districts spread rapidly toward villages, forcing evacuations. Online videos showed residents fleeing on foot as fire engulfed a main roadway, briefly stranding vehicles including civilian aid cars. Meanwhile, a blaze that began on Thursday in Karabuk province remained uncontained, prompting precautionary evacuation of nearly 20 villages. Authorities closed the Ankara-Karabuk highway as residents attempted to relocate livestock from danger zones. Turkish Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Ibrahim Yumakli confirmed on Saturday 76 active fires nationwide -- 28 forested and 48 rural, citing extreme heat and "very high risk" conditions. He said firefighting teams will continue night operations. Temperatures reached 38 degrees Celsius in Bursa and 37 degrees Celsius in Karabuk on Saturday, with forecasts predicting even higher temperatures over the next two days.
