Istanbul (AP) – A wildfire swallowed turkey For several weeks, the country threatened the fourth-largest city on Sunday, causing more than 3,500 people to flee their homes, killing two.
GreeceBulgaria and Montenegro are fighting flames fed to unusually high temperatures, dry conditions and strong winds.
Overnight fires in the woodland surrounding Bursa in northwestern Turkey spread rapidly, covering the red sky with a red glow on the eastern outskirts of the city. Dozens of harsh wildfires have been struggling the country every day since late June, with the government declaring two western provinces, Izmir and Bilesik. Disaster area on friday.
On Wednesday, July 23, 2025, wildfires rage in the forest area near Kavsla village in the Karabuk district of northwest Turkey (Ridvan Bostanci/Iha via AP)
Forestry Minister Ibrahim Yumakuri told reporters late Sunday that 3,515 people had safely evacuated from the village to the northeast of Bursa as more than 1,900 firefighters fought the flames. The highway linking Bursa to the capital Ankara was closed as the surrounding forests were burned.
Mayor Mustafa Bozbey said a firefighter died of a heart attack while working, adding that the flames had burned 3,000 hectares (7,413 acres) in the city. Local media said one person was killed and two were seriously injured when a water tanker fell into a valley outside Bursa.
Orhan Salivar, a state opposition council member, described the scene as an “apocalypse.”
By morning, reducing the wind provided firefighters with rest. Firefighters continued their efforts to fight the flames. However, television footage revealed the ashes landscapes where farms and pine forests had previously stood.
Yumakli said firefighters across the country faced 84 separate flames on Saturday. The country’s northwest has been under the greatest threat, including Karabuk, where wildfires have been burning since Tuesday, with 1,839 people evacuating 19 villages.
Aside from Bursa and Karabuk, a major fire was raging in Karamanmaras in southern Turkey, the minister said, warning that the wind could suddenly rekindle the sudden rekindle of not covering the fire after the wind had faded.
The troubled firefighters and rescuers rescued thousands of livestock and pets who were hurriedly left to evacuate the threatened area. Local media also showed images of workers supporting wildlife caught in the fire.
Unseasonably high temperatures, dry conditions and strong winds fuel wildfires.
The Weather Directorate said turkey recorded a high of 50.5 degrees Celsius (122.9 degrees Fahrenheit) in the southeastern Sirnak province on Friday. He said highs in July were seen in 132 other locations.
Relatives and friends grieve during the funeral of five rescue volunteers killed while fighting wildfires in the northwest Esquisehir province of Ankara, Turkey (via AP via Yavuz Ozden/Dia photo)
Fifteen people have died in the last few weeks Ten rescue volunteers and forestry workers were killed On Wednesday, a fire in Esquise Hill, western Türkiye.
Justice Minister Irmaz Tank said late Saturday that prosecutors have investigated fires in 33 states since June 26th, with legal action being taken against 97 suspects.
One night evacuation
In Greece, firefighters fought active wildfires on the southwestern part of the country and on the island of Kisera on Sunday, following a burning flame in the north. Clioneri’s suburbs of Athens Saturday. High temperatures reaching over 38 c (100 f) continue for most of the country, but the wind is slightly mitigated.
At Clioneri, 27 residents were evacuated overnight with police assistance after initially ignoring the warning. Authorities urged the public to comply with evacuation orders and warned that resistance would put both civilians and rescuers at risk.
Firefighters reported three people hospitalized due to breathing problems and one firefighter who was treated for burns at a military hospital.
On Evia Island, where another fire is currently under control, media reports show that numerous animals have died in the barn.
Incited by strong winds
Like the southern Bulgaria border with Greece and Turkey, and the frontier of Western Serbia, firefighters fought wildfires as the government declared the worst state disaster zone. Almost half of the country’s residents have been issued the highest level of Code Red warning.
On Saturday, July 26th, 2025, when a crycopter is flying outside Crycopter in Athens, Greece, firefighters try to destroy the wildfire.
National Fire Force Chief Alexander Zurtov told reporters there were 236 wildfires on fire. The government had sought help from EU partners, he added, and aircraft were expected later on Sunday from the Czech Republic, Slovakia, France, Hungary and Sweden.
Overnight flames have led firefighters to retreat in the Strumyani area of the southwestern region. They were reinforced by soldiers on Sunday. Dozens of people fled homes in the Trang region of the western region as flames threatened villages near the Serbian border.
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Associated Press writers Veselin Toshkov of Sofia, Bulgaria, and Demetris Nellas of Athens contributed to this report.
