Firefighters across the Mediterranean region battled intense wildfires on Monday, with blazes reported in Turkey, Greece, Albania and the Balkans, as strong winds and scorching heat fuelled devastation in forests and residential areas.
In Turkey, crews worked to extinguish wildfires in three separate provinces. One of the most severe raged for a sixth day in the mountainous Black Sea province of Karabuk, around 200 kilometres north of Ankara. The fire forced the evacuation of more than a dozen villages and burned vast stretches of forest.
In Bursa province, three firefighters were killed on Sunday after their vehicle crashed while responding to a blaze, according to Turkey’s Forestry Ministry. Emergency workers also fought two other fires in the area on Monday. More than 3,600 residents were earlier evacuated from communities in the southern provinces of Mersin and Antalya.
Turkey has experienced dozens of wildfires in recent weeks amid soaring temperatures, with ten firefighters reported dead last week alone during operations in Eskisehir province.
Across the Aegean, Greece’s fire brigade reported at least 44 new wildfires in the past 24 hours. On the southern island of Kythera, strong winds reignited a blaze that had been burning since Saturday. In Athens, emergency teams swiftly brought under control a fire that ignited near Mount Hymettus, close to a university and densely populated areas.
In Albania, over 900 firefighters backed by army personnel struggled to contain a wildfire threatening the coastal city of Saranda and other resorts along the Ionian Sea. Police disclosed that 13 people had been arrested in recent days over arson-related offences.
Meanwhile, Bulgaria received support from several European nations as it deployed firefighting aircraft to battle a major blaze near its border with Turkey.
Altogether, wildfires have scorched an estimated 16,000 acres across the affected countries. Two people have reportedly been detained in connection with investigations into the causes of the fires, local media reported.
In Greece, multiple villages were evacuated over the weekend, and at least five people were injured in separate wildfire incidents. While the country endured its third heatwave of the summer, rainfall in neighbouring Serbia brought relief and helped contain over 100 wildfires.
Experts say the Mediterranean’s hot, dry summers have become increasingly hazardous due to climate change, with more frequent and intense heatwaves contributing to a rise in destructive wildfires across the region.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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