Status: 08/12/2021 11:10 a.m.
The danger has not yet been averted, but the situation in the forest fire areas in Greece and Turkey is easing. In Italy, the highest heat wave level has been declared for many cities.
Rainfalls have been significant in fighting the fires in at night Greece helped. According to reports from local reporters, many fires went out on both the second largest island of Evia and on the Peloponnese peninsula. It is much better, said several mayors on the Peloponnese peninsula unanimously on state radio. In many cases, drivers received the first raindrops with honking concerts, as the news channel Skai reported.
The drought was the main cause of the devastating fires, which, according to initial estimates, destroyed more than 90,000 hectares of forest and agricultural land and thousands of homes. Countless animals died. The fire brigade warned that the danger was not over yet. In many cases the undergrowth was still burning and new fires could break out. In addition, strong winds were blowing across the country. All fire brigade units from more than 20 nations are still on high alert.
Major fire in Turkey under control
Also in the Turkey The situation is apparently easing. A major fire in the southwestern Turkish province of Mugla was brought under control two weeks after the outbreak. Forces minister Bekir Pakdemirli wrote on Twitter during the night to cool the area in the Köycegiz district. Most recently, strong winds hindered the fire fighting in the region.
More than 200 fires had broken out in Turkey since the end of July, including 16 major forest fires. More than half of the 81 provinces were affected. Most of the fires have now been brought under control. The fire wreaked havoc on the coastal provinces of Antalya and Mugla in particular. Eight people were killed.
Flood after heavy rainfall
Floods and landslides killed at least five people in northern Turkey. A person is still missing, said the civil protection. The masses of water destroyed houses and bridges in the Black Sea provinces of Bartin, Kastamonu, Sinop and Samsun on Wednesday and tore cars with them. Helicopters rescued people who had gone to safety on the roofs of houses.
A hospital in Sinop had to be evacuated. The authorities said 45 patients, including four intensive care patients, were brought to safety during the operation. Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said the operation was necessary because of a severe water ingress. Images from the DHA news agency showed that the floor of the hospital was under water.
In Italy Residents and tourists in many parts of the country have to prepare for more hot days. The Ministry of Health issued the highest heat wave level three for many Italian cities for today and Friday. Accordingly, it should be very hot in Bari on the southern Adriatic coast, in the capital Rome as well as in Palermo and Trieste.
In Sicily, a measuring station in the province around the city of Syracuse showed 48.8 degrees Celsius on Wednesday, as the news agency Ansa reported. The value could therefore be a European record – but it would have to be officially confirmed. In 1977, 48 degrees Celsius were measured in Athens and the city of Elefsina, some 30 kilometers to the west.
A total of four dead in Calabria
According to media reports, the number of forest fire deaths in Calabria rose to four on Wednesday. In the town of Cardeto in the southern Italian region of Calabria, a missing pensioner was found dead on his property, as the news agency Ansa reported in the evening. The man died of burns.
The Italian civil defense received ten requests for air support with fire-fighting planes from Calabria – more than from any other region on the day. Across the country, the pilots brought four fires under control or were able to extinguish them from the air. Air support was therefore not possible for three of them.
In Algeria the number of deaths continued to increase after the devastating forest fires in the country. At least 49 civilians died in the flames, the state news agency APS reported, citing the attorney general of the particularly affected region of Tizi Ouzou. There may be hundreds of injuries.
28 soldiers killed in rescue operations in Algeria
According to the state television, 28 soldiers were also killed in rescue operations. In total, more than 100 fires broke out in the North African country. The government is assuming arson. According to media reports, people who lost their houses in the flames or were brought to safety as a precaution are temporarily staying in student dormitories, schools or with host families. Two firefighting planes that were previously in service in Greece are expected to arrive from the EU today.