Wildfire in Turkey’s Antalya worries locals
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A wildfire erupted in the forest areas of Turkey’s Antalya on Monday evening and has been burning for four days now.
Efforts from rescue teams have lessened the threat of the fire, but the incident has sparked fear and concern among residents of Antalya’s Kemer district.
Hatice Arslan, a resident of Kemer, says the fire worries the residents as this is the first time they have experienced an incident of this magnitude.
"We left the village and came back after two days and before the fire started, the electricity went off," Arslan told Rudaw’s Shawkat Harki on Thursday.
According to data from the Ministry of Forestry, the fire has affected around 400 hectares of forest. In addition to the aerial teams, over 600 firefighters are working on the ground to extinguish the fire.
"Now we intervene mostly with helicopters and airplanes, and our friends on the ground continue to extinguish and cool down the places they reach," Jihan Belhan, a firefighter, told Rudaw.
An environmentalist group named Alfa has arrived in Kemer, hoping to rescue the animals threatened by the fire. However, they claim that they cannot reach the animals due to the inaccessibility of the rocky roads.
“The heat level is very high and in such situations, the biggest obstacle in front of us is the lack of roads because the area is mountainous,” said Yaen Can, a member of Alfa.
29 helicopters, 10 airplanes, and 80 firefighting vehicles continue to work to put out the fire.
Efforts from rescue teams have lessened the threat of the fire, but the incident has sparked fear and concern among residents of Antalya’s Kemer district.
Hatice Arslan, a resident of Kemer, says the fire worries the residents as this is the first time they have experienced an incident of this magnitude.
"We left the village and came back after two days and before the fire started, the electricity went off," Arslan told Rudaw’s Shawkat Harki on Thursday.
According to data from the Ministry of Forestry, the fire has affected around 400 hectares of forest. In addition to the aerial teams, over 600 firefighters are working on the ground to extinguish the fire.
"Now we intervene mostly with helicopters and airplanes, and our friends on the ground continue to extinguish and cool down the places they reach," Jihan Belhan, a firefighter, told Rudaw.
An environmentalist group named Alfa has arrived in Kemer, hoping to rescue the animals threatened by the fire. However, they claim that they cannot reach the animals due to the inaccessibility of the rocky roads.
“The heat level is very high and in such situations, the biggest obstacle in front of us is the lack of roads because the area is mountainous,” said Yaen Can, a member of Alfa.
29 helicopters, 10 airplanes, and 80 firefighting vehicles continue to work to put out the fire.