Tragedy Strikes Eskişehir: 10 Forest Firefighters Perish in Seyitgazi Blaze
Eskişehir, Turkey – A devastating forest fire in the Seyitgazi district of Eskişehir has claimed the lives of ten dedicated forest officials. The heroic firefighters were caught in the inferno while battling the rapidly spreading flames. Their funerals are expected to be held in the Kırka neighborhood of Eskişehir.
The grim news was shared on social media by AK Party Eskişehir Deputy Nebi Hatipoğlu, who expressed profound sorrow over the loss. “Sadly, the sentence that will describe our sadness. Seyitgazi’de forest fire, while fighting the flames of the martyrs of the hero forest workers are experiencing the deep grief of losing. Homeland land, our forests for the sake of protecting our sacrifices to our brothers and sisters,” Hatipoğlu stated.
Speaking to CNN Turk, Hatipoğlu described the evening as “very painful.” He confirmed that ten forestry workers lost their lives while attempting to extinguish the blaze. Hatipoğlu expressed disbelief at the severity of the incident, given the relatively small size of the forest.”It is indeed not a very big forest, we could not believe how it happened in such a small forest, they had survived a danger yesterday, we were very happy, we gave martyrs today,” he lamented. He also highlighted the human element in moast wildfires, urging public awareness and caution. “99 percent of these fires are human beings.Please reach the awareness of this work and everyone can pull themselves,” he implored.
Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, İbrahim Yumaklı, provided further details, explaining that the firefighters were trapped when the wind shifted unexpectedly, intensifying the flames. “There are no problems with 4 of these fires. However in Eskişehir, Seyitgazi, 19 forest employees related to the fire that started and switched to opium, 24 people, including 5 acute members, suddenly remained in the fire when the wind changed into flames,” Minister Yumaklı explained. He also noted ongoing efforts to combat other fires across the contry and warned of anticipated high temperatures and wind variations in the coming days, urging all 86 million citizens to exercise extreme caution.