Raging wildfires hit another popular British holiday destination: Turkey next to suffer deadly blazes as Europe swelters in 43C heat
Flames ripped through the forested mountains surrounding the city in northwest Turkey overnight, bringing a red glow to the night sky.
Bursa governor's office said more than 1,760 people had been safely evacuated from villages to the northeast as more than 1,100 firefighters battled the flames.
The highway linking Bursa to the capital, Ankara, was closed as surrounding forests burned.
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The Independent
26 minutes ago
- The Independent
What wildfires and extreme heat in Europe could mean for your summer holiday
For a third summer in a row, extreme heat is causing chaos in southeastern Europe. Turkey recorded its highest temperature on record on Friday reaching 50.5C, or 123F. The UK Met Office says: 'This extreme heat is bringing serious health impacts and giving a very high risk of wildfires.' Blazes have also broken out in parts of Albania and Italy. In Greece, firefighters are tackling wildfires in the northern suburbs of Athens as well as on some Greek islands. A pattern of wildfires and evacuations on Greek islands has played out each summer. 2023: the mass evacuation of 20,000 holidaymakers from the Greek island of Rhodes due to wildfires. 2024: many British tourists in Kos were moved from their hotels as a precaution as wildfires flared. Other islands including Zante still bear the scars of wildfires. 2025: earlier this summer, several thousand people were evacuated from the south eastern corner of Crete, though the wildfires did not affect the key resorts of Elounda and Malia. Besides the extreme distress caused to communities who have seen some homes destroyed in the blaze, there is concern about the safety of holidaymakers – with fears that hot, dry conditions could fuel further blazes. What is happening in Greece? The Greek national weather service predicts that, on the mainland, the heat will reach heights of 37 degrees this summer. The General Secretariat for Civil Protection has issued a Fire Risk Map that shows the southern mainland of Greece, as well as the whole island of Crete, at the second-highest alert. Fires over the weekend on some lesser-visited islands including Kythira and Evia. After weeks of hot, dry weather, the fear is that wildfires could break out elsewhere. Holidaymakers in Athens have been affected: the Acropolis, the main tourist attraction in the Greek capital, closed for five hours on Sunday afternoon 'due to high temperatures for the safety of employees and visitors'. Meanwhile cruise ships are cancelling some excursions because of concerns about extreme heat. What are the authorities saying about the current heatwave? Even without wildfires, heat can be a serious problem. The Greek weather service warned people at the weekend on the island of Crete that 'high temperatures will lead to health risks amongst the elderly and very young.' The NHS warns that excessive heat is potentially dangerous for children aged five and under, and older people aged 65 years and over, as well as people with underlying health conditions including heart problems, breathing problems, and diabetes. The advice is to avoid outdoor activities, keep well hydrated and stay in an air-conditioned room – which may not constitute everyone's idea of a great holiday. The Foreign Office earlier this month stepped up its warning for British travellers to Greece, to include the advice of: 'consider preparing a grab bag' containing passports, mobile phones and chargers, cash, bank cards and medications. Is the Turkish temperature record more alarming? It is, but the peak was reached about as far from the coast and cities of southwest Turkey as it is possible to be – in the southeastern city of Silopi, on the Iraqi border. More of concern are the wildfires that have claimed firefighters ' lives in the large western Turkish city of Bursa, which is not far from Istanbul. But life is continuing as normal in Istanbul and the key resort areas around Bodrum, Marmaris and Antalya. Can people anxious about travelling to Turkey and Greece cancel? Probably not without losing most, or all of, their money. Under the Package Travel Regulations, holidaymakers can cancel for a refund 'if unavoidable and extraordinary circumstances occur at the place of destination or its immediate vicinity which significantly affect the performance of the package or the carriage of passengers to the destination'. The high temperatures and localised wildfires do not (yet) constitute 'unavoidable and extraordinary circumstances' that could affect holidays. Usual terms will apply: for imminent departures, cancellations are likely to result in the loss of the total cost of the holiday. It can, though, be transferred to other people for a nominal fee. Holidaymakers who have declared a pre-existing medical condition that would clearly be exacerbated by the unusually hot weather may be able to claim if they decide not to travel. Conversely, could people pick up a bargain Greek holiday this summer? Yes. Holiday companies are selling packages for under £400 to the Greek islands, including departures from Cardiff to Kefalonia on 29 July and Exeter to Zante on 7 August through Tui. If extreme heat is an annual event in the Med, could holidaymakers switch to cooler destinations? That seems rational – including staying in Britain. But tourism minister Sir Chris Bryant says domestic tourism in the UK is still below pre-Covid levels; the British love going abroad. There is an increased emphasis on travel to northern destinations, with more routes this summer to Iceland, Norway and Finland than ever. Yet the shift is only marginal. Looking at easyJet's schedules for this week from Manchester: there are nine flights to the Egyptian Red Sea and only one to Iceland, which makes clear the appetite for sunshine. The temperature this week in the Red Sea resorts of Sharm El Sheikh and Hurghada will reach 39C (over 102F) this week. Some shrewd destinations around the Mediterranean are laying on activities that avoid the hottest times of day. In the Italian Adriatic city of Grado, for example, the free city walking tour begins at 10pm. The oldest and most impressive church in the Aegean – the Ekatontapyliani on the Greek island of Paros – now opens for visitors from 7am to 11pm.
The Guardian
an hour ago
- The Guardian
Weather tracker: cooldown in sight for south-east Europe after scorching heatwave
After enduring a relentless stretch of searing temperatures, relief is finally in sight for south-east Europe. The Balkans, which have been scorched by a brutal heatwave over recent weeks, have seen daily maximum temperatures soar, culminating in a peak on Saturday with widespread temperatures of 40C (104F) and above across Albania, Serbia, Bulgaria and neighbouring regions. Turkey also suffered, with a scorching 50.5C (122.9F) recorded in Silopi on Friday, the country's all-time highest maximum temperature. Now these places are set to experience a dramatic cooldown as a refreshing northerly airmass is moving in, bringing an abrupt end to the extreme heat and offering much-needed respite. The shift will be striking as temperatures are expected to tumble from above 40C to below 30C (86F), with some areas experiencing a drop of more than 15C in maximum daily highs as the week progresses. In Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, for instance, Saturday's peak of 38.9C (102F) will give way to maximum daytime temperatures struggling to reach the low 20s celsius by Tuesday. The cool change will also bring the potential for rainfall as it turns a little more unsettled over the coming days – welcome news for firefighters battling wildfires that have plagued the region in recent weeks. The respite is expected to take a little longer in Turkey, although temperatures will be closer to the seasonal norm by the end of the week. Across the Atlantic, Canada continues to struggle with both heat and fire. The country remains in the grip of its own heatwave, which has fuelled numerous wildfires and severely degraded air quality. The Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec remain under multiple health advisories as the smoke lingers, causing health issues as the fine particulates associated with the smoke irritate the lungs and can trigger or exacerbate respiratory or cardiovascular disease. The pollution is not confined to Canada, however. High levels of airborne particulates are drifting eastward into the United States, prompting air quality alerts in states including Maine and New York too. Meanwhile in Asia, north-western India is bracing for an onslaught of torrential rainfall. Intense thunderstorms are forecast to deliver more than 200mm (7.8in) of rain within just 24 hours across parts of east Rajasthan on Monday, with the city of Kota – home to about 1.5 million people – potentially in the direct path of impact. Across the border in Madhya Pradesh, stations such as Shivpuri have already reported significant rainfall, with 118mm (4.6in) recorded in just 24 hours by 8.30am local time on the morning of Sunday. Sign up to Down to Earth The planet's most important stories. Get all the week's environment news - the good, the bad and the essential after newsletter promotion Although the monsoon season is well under way, these regions – typically hot and arid during the summer – are especially vulnerable. The long dry spells leave soils hardened and hydrophobic, increasing the risk of flash flooding as rainwater rapidly runs off the surface. With thunderstorms expected to continue into Tuesday and Wednesday, cumulative rainfall totals could exceed 400mm (15.7in) in some areas. The potential for widespread flooding, especially in urban centres, remains a pressing concern through the week.
The Sun
2 hours ago
- The Sun
Horror moment inferno erupts near busy beach sending panicked tourists fleeing as wildfires hit a THIRD European hotspot
THIS is the shocking moment beachgoers were surrounded by smoke as a wildfire hit the Italian hotspot of Sardinia. Sunbathers were blocked from fleeing by car after flames reached right up to the sand near Punta Molentis on the southeast of the island. 7 7 7 The island's coast guard evacuated 102 people by sea while a helicopter watched over the evacuation. Some 200 cars and a kiosk were torched and strong winds made the job for firefighters tackling the blaze trickier. Beachgoers filmed the thick black and grey smoke rising into the sky as they gathered their towels and spades and prepared to flee. Footage also showed the motors burned out after flames had ripped through the parking area. Many of those at the beach had driven down near the water to save them walking in the 34C heat. The area of the Sardinian coast is known as Sarrabus - with local media saying a "jewel" had been destroyed in the fire. Firefighters battled the blaze from the air with two Canadair aerial firefighting plane, a firefighting helicopter, aircraft from the regional fleet, and an Italian Air Force vehicle. It comes after two people died amid a 50C heatwave aand huge fires in Turkey. Some 3,500 people have been evacuated after the wildfires hit the northwest of the country. More than 1,900 firefighters were drafted in to help save those still trapped and to extinguish the flames. Fresh wildfires engulf Turkey as 1,500 flee their homes and firefighter dies days after raging blazes killed 13 Firefighters have been battling more than 600 fires fuelled by high winds in the drought-hit nation over the past week. Fires have also hit Greece after a week-long heatwave peaked with temperatures surpassing 45 degrees. Thousands of people were evacuated as fires swept villages near Athens and Aegean islands. A wildfire burned through a northern suburb of the Greek capital on Saturday, and some residents were ordered to evacuate, the country's Fire Service reported. 7 7 Firefighters were also battling three other major fires on Greece's two largest islands, Crete and Evia. Strong winds caused the fire to spread rapidly and prompting evacuations of several settlements. On the island of Evia, 115 firefighters and 24 vehicles were deployed to put out fires, assisted by six planes and seven helicopters. Cyprus has been hit with its worst wildfires "for 50 years" amid growing fears a 44C heatwave will fuel the blaze even further. One Brit family, Lucy and Ben Armstrong, tragically had their home in the Troodos mountains burned during the fires on the island. Speaking to The Sun, Ben said: "We lost everything that day, there's nothing left. "We had fish tanks in the house and there was absolutely nothing left of what was in the water except melted glass on the floor." Two people were found dead in a burnt car and over 70 houses were destroyed in the fires. 7
