Wildfires in Mediterranean Leave a Dozen Dead as Heat Soars

Wildfires fueled by soaring temperatures and strong winds across the eastern Mediterranean left a dozen people dead in Turkey and Cyprus.

Ten forest workers and search and rescue volunteers were killed in Turkey’s Eskisehir province and 14 others were hospitalized on Wednesday after being trapped by flames driven by rapidly shifting winds, Anadolu Agency reported. Two people died in Cyprus, where authorities ordered evacuations after about 100 homes were burned.

Turkey’s Agriculture & Forestry Minister Ibrahim Yumakli warned of extremely dangerous conditions as a blast of Saharan air fuels a heat wave that’s seen temperatures reach 50C (122F) in southeastern provinces. Nine major wildfires ignited on Wednesday alone.

Wildfires have always affected the Mediterranean, but they have become a near constant summer threat as climate change creates more extreme weather patterns. A string of heat waves across Europe — the world’s fastest-warming continent — have temporarily shut down tourist attractions like the Eiffel Tower and the Acropolis this summer, while disrupting transport and threatening the health of millions of vulnerable people.

In Cyprus, a blaze broke out in the Limassol district in the south of the island on Wednesday. Spain has sent two firefighting planes to help Cyprus, while Jordan is also providing assistance.

About 100 square kilometers have so far been burnt and more than a dozen aircraft will soon be assisting firefighters in bringing flare-ups in forest areas under control, fire service spokesman Andreas Kettis told state-run Cyprus News Agency. Highs in inland Cyprus are set to climb as high as 44C on Thursday.

Fire risks will also increase across Greece, with strong northerly winds forecast on Friday and Saturday and temperatures of as high as 44C. Weather warnings are being escalated, while night-time lows in cities will remain at up to 29C.

Human development patterns and land use changes are putting more people at risk from wildfires, said Christophe Neff, a senior researcher at Germany’s Karlsruhe Institute of Technology and expert in the region’s fire ecology.

“Climate change will not only affect wildfire dynamics in Mediterranean ecosystems but also transform many regions in Europe into wildfire risk landscapes,” he said.

Heat and wildfire warnings have also been issued further north in Finland and Norway. Alerts are also in place across the Iberian Peninsula and much of southeastern Europe, but a change in weather patterns is forecast to bring some relief by early August.

That change is already impacting northwest Europe, with 14 French regions, including Paris, covered by amber warnings for thunderstorms and floods. Rainfall of as much as 80 millimeters could also impact some grain and wine-growing regions, with hail also hitting vines around Sancerre, according to Ici radio.