According to British media reports, the Turkish forest fire that began this Thursday (July 29) is still continuing, and its intensity is four times higher than the country’s historical record. The fire swept through the tourist areas of Antalya and Mugla in Turkey, killing at least four people, and tens of thousands of tourists were forced to evacuate from the hotel by boat.
Turkey’s record for the highest temperature in 60 years was broken last week, with a high temperature of 49.1 degrees Celsius in the southeastern town of Gizly. In recent times, following extreme heat waves in the United States, floods in Europe, heavy rainfall in China, and fires in Siberia in Russia, fires in Turkey have made people increasingly worried that the weather in various places will become more extreme with climate change.
Turkish local media released a picture of a popular resort in the Aegean Sea surrounded by burning hillsides, with forests and farmland turned to ashes. In Bodrum, Mugla province, 80 hectares (approximately 800,000 square meters) of land were burned despite the fire fighting on the ground and in the air. The fire blocked the exit of the two hotels, forcing the coast guard and fishing boats to evacuate more than 4,000 tourists and staff.
All over the country, firefighters had to fight more than fifty fires, and dozens of people were hospitalized due to smoke and dust. The government speculated that the cause of the fire might be an arson attack by Kurdish separatists, but did not provide evidence. Climate expert Levent Kurnaz believes: “The weather is extremely hot and dry, which helps to cause fires. Our smallest mistakes led to huge disasters.”
Fire in Turkey (Source: Guardian)
However, from the perspective of more macro climate change trends, the fire risk in Turkey and other countries is still increasing. Climate experts predict that, driven by the continuous emission of greenhouse gases, the Mediterranean region will be hit by a double blow from rising temperatures and changes in rainfall. According to the latest report of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the risk of wildfires in southern Europe will increase in the future.
The World Meteorological Organization said on Twitter that extreme high temperatures are hitting the wider Mediterranean region. It is expected that the temperature in the inland areas of Italy, Greece, Tunisia and Turkey will far exceed 40°C. The World Meteorological Organization urges people to prepare for possible health and water supply problems.
The Turkish Meteorological Agency believes that it is almost impossible for the country to get a respite in the coming week. Next week, the temperature in Ankara and several other places will be more than 12°C higher than the average temperature in the past August.
In other European countries, wildfires have hit southern Greece, forcing the evacuation of villages near the western port city of Patras. According to reports, there have also been fires in Bulgaria and Albania. High temperature warnings have been issued in parts of North Macedonia, Albania, Bulgaria, Romania and Serbia.
The European Union has issued the highest fire risk warnings to places in Italy, Portugal, Spain and parts of North Africa. A fire broke out in Lebanon this Thursday, resulting in one death.
(Edit: Ah Qian)Return to Sohu to see more
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