ISTANBUL (Reuters) – One person has died and 10 people were trapped in a forest fire which was burning for a second day in southern Turkey on Thursday, Agriculture Minister Bekir Pakdemirli said, as rescue and extinguishing efforts continued.
Hot weather and strong winds have helped the fire spread around the town of Manavgat, 75 km (45 miles) east of the resort city of Antalya, and nearby villages.
Pakdemirli said an 82-year-old man was found dead during the evacuation of the district of Kepezbeleni, 16 km (10 miles) northeast of Manavgat, and 10 people were stranded at the nearby Oymapinar dam, he said. Units were en route to rescue the people, Pakdermirli said.
Authorities evacuated 18 villages and districts in Antalya while 16 more villages were evacuated in the neighbouring provinces of Adana and Mersin, he added.
Television footage showed burnt residential buildings and people fleeing across fields as firefighters backed by helicopters battled to extinguish the fires.
(Reporting by Yesim Dikmen; Writing by Ezgi Erkoyun; Editing by Dominic Evans)
