Wildfires Claim Lives in İzmir as Turkey Battles Fierce Blazes

Turkey is facing a high-risk wildfire season, with numerous blazes erupting across the country in recent days.

A forestry worker and an 80-year-old resident perished as flames, driven by fierce winds, tore through the region, challenging the nation’s one of the largest-ever firefighting operations.

In Ödemiş, the blaze spread rapidly, engulfing a vast area and claiming the life of a forestry worker, hailed as a martyr, and an 80-year-old bedridden man unable to escape.

Agriculture and Forestry Minister İbrahim Yumaklı revealed another worker is fighting for life in intensive care.

“These losses weigh heavily on us,” Yumaklı said at the Forestry General Directorate’s Fire Management Center.

“Yet we remain committed to extinguishing these fires in honor of those we’ve lost.”

Teams equipped with 10 airplanes, 25 helicopters, and water tankers are battling relentlessly, joined by personnel from state agencies and local municipalities.

The fire in Çeşme has shown signs of weakening, raising hopes for containment.

Yumaklı expressed cautious optimism, noting that favorable updates could come soon.

In Buca, the blaze forced the closure of the İzmir-Aydın highway as it crept toward Kısıkköy’s furniture district.

Elsewhere, fires in Antalya, Adana’s Ceyhan, Kırklareli, and İstanbul’s Silivri were subdued, the latter contained by 9:00 p.m. on July 3.

A blaze in Uşak’s Eşme, sparked by a baling machine in a rural field, was also brought under control after seven hours.

Yumaklı reported that 624 wildfires erupted nationwide in the past week, with 621 now contained.

Since January, Turkey has faced 3,044 fires, including 1,305 in forests, tackled by a force of 25,000 personnel and a record-breaking air and ground fleet.

“Our 16,035 sorties have dropped 52,000 tons of water,” he said, underscoring the scale of the response.

He likened the week’s blazes in İzmir, Sakarya, Hatay, and beyond to the devastating 2021 fires, crediting advanced resources for averting worse outcomes.

The minister issued a stern warning against lighting fires amid forecasts of high winds and scorching heat.

“A single spark can ignite disaster,” he said, pointing to a preventable Buca fire that strained resources needed in Ödemiş.

Yumaklı also condemned disinformation, urging the public to support the firefighting effort.

“Our teams are giving their all. Turkey’s 86 million citizens must stand with them,” he said.

With extreme weather expected to persist, authorities remain on high alert until mid-October. Yumaklı called for vigilance, emphasizing prevention over reaction. 

Izmir governor Suleyman Elban said the main problem had been wind speeds of up to 85 kilometers per hour (53 miles per hour) and their constant changes of direction.

"So the intervention from both land and air is seriously challenging," he told reporters.

Firefighters backed by fire engines and firefighting aircraft were battling the flames, he added.

Both fires in the province, as well as others over the weekend and since controlled, had been caused by power cables, he said.

Source: HDN