Manavgat: The Turkish farmer Sercan Bayat heard a wildfire engulfing his village, and he shouted for his cows to flee. He prayed for his own death rather than watch his animals die.
In 30-year-old Bayat’s life, seeing his animals tormented by the inferno — a moment he captured on video – was the most painful moment, he said. While he lost eight of his animals in the fire, he later found new life in the form of a newborn goat kid lying helpless, but still breathing, after its mother had perished in the fire.
‘Two or three hours after the flames were put out, I saw this one on the ground. He is our baby goat now. We called him Miracle,’ Bayat said. ‘We found another goat amidst the wildfire. She has a baby. There you go. Miracle number two,’ Bayat added while kissing the baby goats.
He said that although his farm in Manavgat in southern Turkey has been severely damaged, and he lost some of his animals, but he is now ‘over the moon’ that his children survived.
Fire officials say there were approximately 100 fires across southern and western Turkey this week. Strong winds and sweltering heat fanned the flames. The death toll from the fires rose to six on Saturday after two firefighters died battling the blaze in Manavgat. Thousands of people were evacuated from their homes.
According to imagery from satellites, smoke from the fires in Antalya and Mersin had extended to Cyprus, 150 kilometers (100 miles) away. In the summer months, wildfires are common in southern Turkey, but local authorities say the latest fires covered a much larger area than usual.
Post Your Comments