A group of firefighters battling the forest fire that broke out on Monday 7 September at around 4.30 pm in the Karaöz neighbourhood of the Aksu district, in the Turkish province of Antalya, were on the verge of being trapped by the flames when a sudden change in wind direction caused the flames to surround them. Finding themselves trapped, the firefighters rushed to get out of the area and narrowly managed to escape with their lives, but the moment – captured on camera by one of those present – showed a dramatic scene in which their lives were in serious danger.
Yesterday, on its third day, the wildfire in Antalya – which started in Karaöz (Aksu) and spread to the neighbourhood of Kızıllı, in the Kepez district – continued to be fought relentlessly by firefighting teams on the ground and from the air. The firefighters, trying to halt the advance of the fire, faced the flames head-on and encountered particularly dangerous situations.
The worst moment undoubtedly occurred on the afternoon of 9 September in Kızıllı, during some dramatic moments that were recorded on a mobile phone. A sudden change in wind direction caused the flames to advance towards the fire crews, who had to deal with an unexpected situation whilst working to contain the wildfire. The teams, including water tankers and support vehicles, narrowly managed to escape, avoiding being surrounded by the fire by a matter of seconds.
Finally, the General Directorate of Forestry announced late on Thursday that the Antalya forest fire, which started in Aksu on 7 September at around 16:25, has been brought under control on its fourth day, according to local media reports. According to the agency, the fire spread towards the Yeşilkaraman neighbourhood due to the wind and subsequently threatened several neighbourhoods in the Kepez district.
More than 1,300 personnel took part in extinguishing the fire
The fire-fighting operation included support teams from Antalya as well as from the provinces of Burdur, Isparta, Izmir, Konya and Karaman. In total, 1,307 personnel were involved, alongside 183 water tankers, 93 construction machines, 211 additional vehicles and more than 10 aircraft.
As a result of the forest fire, 254 homes were evacuated from three neighbourhoods in the districts of Aksu and Kepez. Teams from AFAD (Disaster and Emergency Management Agency) and the Gendarmerie transported 720 evacuees to safe areas.
Once the work to assess the damage and calculate the losses had been completed, AFAD was asked to provide an initial allocation of emergency aid amounting to 2 million Turkish lira – over 35,000 euros – to meet the urgent needs of the local population. Work to cool the ground is currently continuing in the area.
Situation regarding the fires in Kumluca (Antalya) and Kozan (Adana)
Meanwhile, another wildfire in Antalya, which broke out on 8 September at around 14:30 in the Toptaş neighbourhood of Kumluca, was brought completely under control yesterday afternoon, according to reports in the Turkish press. The fire affected approximately 1,400 hectares of land and caused damage to around 12 hectares of greenhouses, as well as affecting some vineyards and gardens.
Regarding the forest fire that had been burning since Tuesday in the district of Kozan, in the Turkish province of Adana – which subsequently spread to the districts of İmamoğlu and Aladağ, forcing the evacuation of 285 homes – was also brought under control today, on the third day of fire-fighting operations.
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Edited and reviewed by:
Pablo Gómez is a specialist in Turkey and has been editor-in-chief of Hispanatolia since 2011. He has been analysing current affairs and geopolitics in Turkey and the surrounding region since 2006.
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