The fire broke out in Hasil village on the Sharazur Plain. Civil defense teams struggled to put out the blaze that killed some 300 goats, sheep and cattle, according to Rudaw’s reporter on the ground.
The fire was started by people burning some dried shrubs and the flames were spread by a strong wind, an eyewitness told Rudaw.
"At first, the fire was small, but later a strong wind arose, causing the fire to get out of control... The fire spread so quickly that even a thousand firefighters could not have contained it,” he said.
He said that the fire almost burned one of the shepherds.
The dead livestock were owned by three families. The damage is estimated to be more than $90,000.
Fires are common in the Kurdistan Region during summer. Some are caused by human activity and others by the scorching weather. Burning shrubs is a common practice by farmers clearing their fields of weeds and shrubs.
Elsewhere in Sulaimani, a fire in Sharbazher burned acres of land belonging to five different villages. A strong wind meant it took firefighting teams hours to put out the flames.
Flames also got out of control in Kirkuk’s Pirde subdistrict where villagers set some shrubs and weeds on fire. Abdulmutalib Najmadin, mayor of the subdistrict, told Rudaw that “the fire started due to burning remains of harvested grain.”
He said that they have warned citizens not to set fire to the dry grass, but their instructions were ignored.
Sazgar Salih contributed to this report
