Turkey continues to fight the wave of wildfires that is devastating mountains and forests and is forcing the evacuation of many villages and residential areas threatened by fire, especially in western provinces of Turkey as Sakarya, Bilecik, Manisa or Izmir (Izmir), where the flames caused significant damage to homes and forced the temporary closure of the airport of the third most populous city in the country.
Driven by strong winds exceeding 100 kilometres per hour on some days and the high temperatures caused by the heat wave, the fires spread rapidly and forced the evacuation of numerous villages and residential areas in provinces such as Sakarya, Bilecik, Denizli, Aydın, Manisa and İzmir, according to Turkish newspapers such as Hürriyet. Although the fire did not cause any loss of life, it did cause extensive damage to houses, working facilities and agricultural fields, which were destroyed.
The latest reports on the situation of the main wildfires indicate that the fire that broke out on 28 June in the Bozdoğan district of Aydın province has been brought under control, while in Sakarya, the forest fire that started in a wooded area of the Taraklı district and was thought to have been extinguished, has reactivated in some areas.
The Turkish Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, Ibrahim Yumaklı, confirmed in the last hours that the fires affecting the districts of Osmaneli and Gölpazarı in the province of Bilecik, and the district of Göynük in Bolu, are under control and have been practically extinguished, while efforts continue to extinguish the wildfire that affected the border area between the provinces of Sakarya and Bilecik.
“The fire in Manisa rekindled again due to the wind. Four villages and two neighbourhoods have been evacuated due to the fire,” the minister said. Another wildfire in Gaziemir, in the Aegean province of Izmir, is also still active due to strong winds in the region, where operations to evacuate people affected by the blaze are continuing .
Fire forced the suspension of all flights at Izmir airport
The province of Izmir has been one of the most severely affected by the fires in western Turkey, to the point that Izmir Adnan Menderes International Airport had to be closed and suspend operations due to the persistent fire in Gaziemir – just 2-3 kilometres from the airport runways – where firefighting crews, supported by aerial means, had to battle with dry terrain and winds that yesterday reached up to 120 km/h, although today the forecast has improved and gusts are expected to be no more than 70-80 km/h.
The closure of Izmir’s main airport was active from 16:00 yesterday (Sunday), affecting numerous flights that were unable to take off or land from its runways and forcing aircraft approaching Izmir to be diverted to other airports . However, in the last few hours the public broadcaster TRT reported that conditions had improved and that the airport is operating normally again since early Monday.
Initial estimates of the damage caused by the fires in Turkey confirm that some 64 residences in Bilecik and another 132 in Izmir have been damaged by the blaze. The Disaster and Emergency Management Agency (AFAD) has initially earmarked an emergency fund of 60 million liras (1.3 million euros) to help victims in both provinces.
Meanwhile, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya announced on social media that some 50,000 people have had to be evacuated due to wildfires in the western provinces of Balıkesir and Bilecik, and also in Hatay, in the south of the country; a fire is also reported to have reached residential areas in the Gazipaşa district of Antalya province, on Turkey’s Mediterranean coast.
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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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