Keystone-SDA
Hundreds of people have been evacuated from seven villages in the Tourist Province in Celanakkale, in northwestern Turkey due to a new fire, the authorities said on Sunday.
(Keystone-ATS) The fire started there on Saturday and quickly spread due to strong winds blowing on the hills close to the city of Geliboli, bordering the very frequented strait of the Dardanelles.
During the night, some 250 inhabitants had to leave five villages, before two others were evacuated on Sunday, wrote on X the governor of Ceunakkale, Omer Toraman, without specifying the total number of people concerned.
“Until now, the fire has not spread to the evacuated areas,” he said, adding that the military cemeteries of the peninsula had not “been affected” by the flames.
Images have been broadcast showing the hills illuminated by lively flames and huge clouds of smoke pouring into the night air.
In total, twelve planes and 18 helicopters fought against the flames alongside 343 ground vehicles as part of an operation involving 1,300 people, detailed on X the Minister of Agriculture, Ibrahim Yumakli.
The hottest July
Much of northwest Turkey has been affected by strong winds in recent days, even if they have diminished on Sunday. This means that efforts to fight fire “progress more positively,” he said.
A prized destination for tourists for its ancient Trojan ruins as well as for the battlefield of Gallipoli, where thousands of soldiers died during the First World War, the province suffered from an “extremely severe drought” during the past year, the governor recalled earlier.
Already on August 11, more than 2,000 people had to be evacuated in this Turkish province due to fire. A violent fire had devastated homes and intoxicated dozens of inhabitants.
Turkey, which has experienced its hottest July since the start of weather readings 55 years ago, has faced several weeks in recent weeks. Fourteen people lost their lives by fighting the fires in July in the west of the country.
Experts claim that climate change increases the frequency and intensity of forest fires and other natural disasters and have urged Turkey to take action to remedy this problem.
