Elderly man dies as wildfires rage in Turkey, forcing evacuations and road closures
The 81-year-old man died from smoke inhalation in a village near the town of Odemis, Suleyman Elban, the governor for Izmir province, said. His death marks the first fatality in a series of wildfires across the country that have forced thousands to flee. A total of 37 other villagers were safely evacuated by security forces and emergency teams, Elban said.
Meanwhile, hundreds of firefighters supported by aircraft and helicopters were deployed to extinguish a wildfire blazing in the Aegean coastal town of Cesme, a tourism hot spot some 192 kilometers (120 miles) west of Odemis. That wildfire, which began on Wednesday, forced the evacuation of three neighborhoods and closed roads. Television footage of the blaze showed flames burning through dried vegetation on both sides of a road.
Elban said the wildfires in Izmir province are believed to have been sparked by electrical lines, which ignited dry grass and spread rapidly due to wind. In the past week, Turkey has battled hundreds of fires across the country that were fueled by fierce winds, scorching heat, and low humidity. The fires–most of which were brought under control–damaged or destroyed around 200 homes, the majority in Izmir, the Interior Ministry said. Dozens of barns were also destroyed.
As firefighting crews battled the blazes, Turkey's parliament adopted the country's first climate law late Wednesday in a move aimed at reaching net-zero emissions by 2053. The legislation includes measures to establish a carbon market board to oversee efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It also imposes fines on companies that fail to comply with the requirements.
The UK-based environmental advocacy group ClientEarth on Thursday welcomed the law's symbolic importance but said it has several shortcomings. 'The law lacks ambitious science-based targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the medium-term and offers no commitment to phasing out fossil fuels,' the group said.
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