Along Turkey’s south coast, fires are raging for the eighth day in a row. The farmers are talking about the biggest disaster in several years. And the anger against Erdogan is growing.
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– The tractor and everything I owned burned down. 50 years of work were gone in minutes, Mitad Akca said Al Jazeera Wednesday. He stood in front of the ruins of his house.
The only thing left after the brutal flames was the family’s jewelry. Three days earlier, the village had burned down in 45 minutes. But Acca’s story is far from the only one.
More than 10,000 people have had to leave their homes, resorts or hotels along Turkey’s Mediterranean coast in the past week, according to The Guardian.
Huge forest fires have engulfed large parts of the coast and destroyed huge agricultural areas.
It has killed eight people so far. Including two firefighters.
The farmers are hardest hit, and several of them have lost everything they own. Thousands of sheep and cows have died. Several have seen their animals burnt alive, writes NTB.
–Spreads lightning fast
137 fires in more than 30 provinces have been extinguished. But nine provinces are still on fire.
Strong winds, low humidity and sky-high temperatures have caused the fires to spread like wildfire.
For the same reason, it is expected that the fires will continue into next week.
–Had to put out the fire myself
Garden hoses, buckets, water bottles and cement mixers: These are some of the tools people have had to use to fight the fires themselves.
In many places, it has taken time for help to arrive. If it has come at all.
– I have begged for help for five days, said a desperate resident in a video that has spread on Twitter, reproduced by The Guardian.
– But there was not even a fire truck here [ …] How in the world can such a leadership exist? he asks.
Many are both angry and frustrated at the lack of or delayed help from the authorities.
Several mayors have begged for firefighting from the air, writes AP.
–Hard criticism of Erdogan
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has admitted that the country has no usable firefighting aircraft. The opposition has therefore criticized the president for organizing the firefighting work too poorly and for being unprepared.
– We live in hell, and we do not know what to do now. It is impossible to intervene from the country. It can only be done with an aviation intervention, but it’s too late now.
This is what Ahmet Aras, the mayor of the city of Bodrum, said in a video reproduced by The Guardian.
There have been several fires in Turkey in recent years. The government was warned 15 years ago after the major fires in Manavgat, but nothing was done. That’s what Hediye Gundiz, leader of the environmental group A Platform, said Al Jazera.
–Erdogan’s government is also criticized for refusing to accept aid from Western countries during the early stages of the fire.
– Our Turkey is strong. Our state is strong, sa Fahrettin Altun, one of Erdogan’s top assistants.
Firefighters were dispatched from Ukraine, Russia, Azerbaijan and Iran. And despite Turkey’s reluctance, the EU sent troops and several planes on Monday to help.
Following pressure from social media, police forces on Tuesday also began using water cannons to put out the fires. These are actually used to break up demonstrations.
In addition, firefighters have been sent from municipalities across the country to the affected provinces with a lack of resources. Several volunteer groups have also helped.
–Erdogan: – False news
Erdogan’s office replies that the entire national emergency response force has been deployed. Allegations of misconduct are “false news”, which only aims to tarnish Turkey’s reputation, he said according to NTB.
On Tuesday warned Turkey’s national broadcaster, which has repeatedly been accused of being controlled by the regime, that television stations covering forest fires continuously “demoralize the people” and can be punished.
In the early stages of the fire claimed civil servants that the fires were started by children or the militant and political group Kurdistan’s Labor Party.
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