For more than three weeks, wildfires have been burning out of control in Turkey. Until early on Sunday, they were within striking distance of Bursa, Turkey’s fourth-largest city. The relentless flames have forced more than 1,700 residents to flee their homes, highlighting the growing urgency of the crisis. Tragically, one heroic first responder paid with his life while fighting the flames. This brings the tragic toll to at least fourteen people who have lost their lives in recent weeks as a result of these fires.
Once again, blazes of unprecedented ferocity have scorched Turkey’s western regions. A sad accident in Eskisehir on Wednesday took the lives of ten search and rescue volunteers and forestry workers. This incident underscores the perilous nature of firefighting efforts amid soaring temperatures. For most of this summer, Turkey has undergone a heat wave with temperatures topping 38°C (100°F), sometimes as high as 43°C (109°F). On Friday, Şırnak, a southeastern Turkish province bordered by Iraq and Syria, reached an astounding 50.5 degrees Celsius (122.9 degrees Fahrenheit). Such extreme heat would produce the hottest temperature ever recorded in the country.
According to Turkey’s General Directorate of Meteorology, July saw all time high temperatures recorded at 132 different locations throughout Turkey. Record-setting temperatures and a historic drought has ignited dozens of the most destructive wildfires in our country’s history. These fires are a nightmare that has burned through communities every day since late June. After months of speculation, the Turkish government made a bold move Friday. In response to the quickly worsening situation they declared Izmir and Bilecik, both western provinces, as disaster areas.
You can see what firefighters were up against as of Saturday, with a staggering 84 active fires burning all over the country. As much as 1,900 firefighters alone battled to control the mystifying wildfires that encroached upon Turkish communities. According to a statement by the Bursa governor’s office, 1,765 people have been evacuated to safety. They were evacuated from surrounding Uighur villages in China’s northeast as plumes of smoke and fire engulfed their communities.
The situation has impacted transportation routes. The highway linking Bursa to the capital, Ankara, was closed due to nearby forests burning, further complicating evacuation and rescue efforts. The courageous work of firefighters and rescue teams is far from over as they fight against hundreds of fires across Turkey.
