Southern Turkey: Massive Wildfire Claims Six lives, Several Houses Gutted

The wildfire that has been raging in southern Turkey since Wednesday has claimed atleast six lives as of Sunday.

Settlements have been gutted down in the fire, while, forests were ablaze, forcing thousands of residents and tourists were forced to evacuate.

Wildfires are common in southern Turkey during summer but the Turkey government has stated that the latest fire has damaged a massive area.

A report by Al Jazeera read that, "Minister of Health Fahrettin Koca said 400 people affected by the fires in Manavgat were treated at hospitals and released, while 10 others were still hospitalised. In Marmaris, 159 people were treated at the hospital and one person was still undergoing treatment for burns".

"Most of the fires are now under control but blazes continued in the southern coastal provinces of Antalya and Mersin, the western coastal province of Mugla, and the central province of Usak," it added.

Turkish meteorological authorities said forecasts pointed to heatwaves along the Aegean and Mediterranean coastal regions. Temperatures are forecast to reach 43 to 47 Celsius (109.4 – 116.6 F) in Antalya next week.