196 out of 208 fires contained in Turkey: President

By Zehra Nur Duz

ANKARA (AA) – Turkey's president announced on Friday that 196 wildfires have been contained since they began last week, while efforts to extinguish the remaining 12 blazes in five provinces are underway.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan told reporters in Istanbul that 208 wildfires have erupted in 44 provinces since July 28. So far, 196 forest fires have been put out, and efforts are underway to extinguish the remaining 12 fires in five provinces, including Antalya, Mugla, Isparta, Aydin, and Denizli, he added.

Erdogan said that five helicopters with night-fighting capability sent by Ukraine are operating round the clock to bring the wildfires under control.

A total of 56 helicopters,16 amphibious aircraft, and nine drones are currently battling the blazes, he noted.

Erdogan added that Azerbaijan has sent over 600 trained firefighters to assist in the ongoing fight against forest fires in the country's southern provinces. President Ilham Aliyev has promised to increase this number, he also said.

Underling that Turkey has mobilized all of its resources to combat the forest fires, the president said damage assessment studies are continuing in the areas affected by the fires.

“Damages in plant production and animal husbandry will be repaired as soon as possible,” he assured.

Turkey will hopefully plant a total of 252 million saplings, three saplings for each Turkish citizen, by the end of the year as part of the “Breath for the Future” campaign, Erdogan added.