Wildfire in Western Turkiye Forces Evacuations

At least one village was evacuated, and some houses have burned down after a wildfire spread near the residential centre of Turkiye's third largest city, Izmir, on Friday, the authorities have stated. According to dpa, no casualties have been reported as yet. Over 1,000 personnel are joining efforts to extinguish fires in the Dogancay neighbourhood of Bayrakli district, some 15 kilometres north of central Izmir, Sleyman Elban, Izmir Governor told reporters. The governor of Izmir added that strong winds have hindered firefighting from the air. Earlier on Friday, Irfan Onal, the mayor of Bayrakli, urged locals on the X platform to "evacuate their homes as soon as possible." The fire "unfortunately reached residential areas due to the wind," Irfan added. A dpa correspondent in the area reported plumes of thick smoke over central Izmir. Source : Saudi Press Agency