Turkey battles wildfires amid claims of sabotage
ISTANBUL: Turkey is under the shock of unprecedented forest fires that killed...
Tourists have been relocated from beaches in south-western Turkey as 13 cities are engulfed in the raging wildfire, not just destroying forest covers but also destroying people’s homes and leaving animals in danger.
According to local media, in the city of Bodrum, three five-star hotels were reportedly evacuated. The wildfire in Turkey, which has been burning since Wednesday, has left six people dead.
AdvertisementForest fires, some under control and some still raging on their second day, lead to evacuation and property damage in Antalya, Adana and Mersin in Turkey’s southhttps://t.co/hftI25nALF
— DAILY SABAH (@DailySabah) July 29, 2021
Two more fatalities were confirmed on Saturday. They were among the thousands of people who have been battling almost 100 separate blazes in resorts and villages on Turkey’s Mediterranean and Aegean coasts – a major tourist region.
Officials say all but 10 of the fires have now been brought under control.
As flames continue to erupt, social media is flooding with heartbreaking videos capturing the disaster.
With hashtag #PrayforTurkey and #TurkeyisBurning, netizens in and outside the country have been trying to draw attention to the severity of the situation.
On Saturday, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited the town of Manavgat, where five fire-related deaths have been confirmed.
Erdogan vowed that the government would do everything to help hundreds of people affected by the disaster rebuild their lives.
The president has been heavily criticized for the shortage of firefighting aircraft in the country. But he said that “the main reason for these issues with planes is that the Turkish Aeronautical Association has not been able to update its fleet and technology”.
He added that more aircraft from Azerbaijan, Iran, Russia and Ukraine were now involved in the large firefighting operation.
AdvertisementMarmaris can yakan görüntüler. #marmarisyanıyor pic.twitter.com/rYxT9tcM74
— Tuncay ÖZKAN (@ATuncayOzkan) July 29, 2021
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