Spanish
Ankara.- At least ten forestry workers died this Wednesday in Turkey while fighting a fire in the central province of Eskişehir, in Anatolia, local authorities reported.
"We are deeply saddened by the loss of these heroic forestry workers," Nabi Hatipoglu, a deputy from the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), stated on social media.
Hatipoglu initially reported 11 deaths, but shortly afterwards corrected the figure and reduced it to 10.
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"Unfortunately, there are no words to describe our pain," he said, adding that the deceased died while fighting the flames of a wildfire in the Seyitgazi area. The fire, which originated three days ago in several provinces in northwestern Turkey, spread eastward and reached the Seyitgazi district on Tuesday, fanned by strong winds. Although on Wednesday morning the authorities reported that the fire had been brought under control, the changing gusts and the virulence of the flames complicated the extinction efforts and trapped several forest firefighters in a cave. According to the NTV channel, the ten deceased were in that place. Injuries were also recorded, some of whom remain hospitalized. The flames of the fires spread easily amid a prolonged drought, aggravated by the intense heat wave that is hitting the region these days. The Turkish Meteorology Service (MGM) forecast temperatures of up to 44 degrees in some provinces of the Aegean region this Wednesday, and up to 45 degrees in southeastern Anatolia. The death of the forestry workers occurs on the same day that the Turkish Gendarmerie arrested 23 people suspected of having caused forest fires, reported the Turkish Interior Minister, Ali Yerlikaya, who asked the population to be more careful in the face of the high risk of fires amid the current heatwave. According to the note, in most cases the fires were started unintentionally, due to recklessness. According to the European Forest Fire Information System, almost 50,000 hectares have been burned in Turkey so far this year.
