Syria battles forest fires for 3rd day, Turkey sends assistance

Syrian emergency workers were battling forest fires raging in the coastal province of Latakia on Saturday for a third day in tough conditions as neighbouring Turkey sent assistance.

Fires have spreading across large parts of Syria, particularly on the coast, for several days, with firefighters struggling to control them due to strong winds and a drought.

An AFP correspondent saw strong winds fanning the flames in forest areas and farmland in Qastal Maaf, around a dozen kilometres (eight miles) from the Turkish border, as residents continued to flee with what they could carry.

Some residential areas in the region were evacuated a day earlier.

Syria’s ministry for emergencies and disaster management said teams from Turkey began helping on Saturday morning “as part of regional coordination to face the fires”, with the assistance including two aircraft and eight fire trucks.

Emergency responders with the Syrian Civil Defence work to extinguish a wildfire in the town of Rabia, in the Latakia countryside, Syria, on Saturday. AP

Turkey, a key supporter of Syria’s new authorities, has been battling its own fires in recent days, including near the Syrian border.

The AFP correspondent saw helicopters bearing the Turkish flag flying over Qastal Maaf assisting firefighters on the ground.

Syria’s civil defence said a volunteer firefighter suffered from smoke inhalation and a service vehicle caught fire.

More than 60 Syrian civil defence and other teams were fighting fires across several areas of Latakia province, the ministry said.

It cited “very difficult conditions, with the explosion of war remnants and mines”, strong winds and high temperatures, adding that mountainous terrain was hampering efforts to reach some blazes.

Smoke rises into the sky during a wildfire in the town of Rabia, Syria. AP

Abdulkafi Kayyal, director of the Directorate of Disasters and Emergencies in Latakia province, told the state SANA news agency that fires in the Qastal Maaf area had moved close to several villages, prompting the evacuations.

Syria’s civil defence warned residents of “the spread of rising smoke emissions to the northern section of the coastal mountains, the city of Hama, its countryside, and southern Idlib areas.”

Agence France-Presse