Syrian firefighters extinguish wildfire in Hama countryside

Civil defense teams in Syria’s Hama province, working with forestry units, extinguished a wildfire that broke out early Friday near Dweir al-Akrad village in the al-Ghab Plain area, the Emergency and Disaster Management Ministry said.

The Emergency and Disaster Management Directorate in Hama said firefighting crews faced significant challenges during the operation, including the presence of landmines, war remnants and unexploded ordnance in the fire zone.

The hazards posed a direct threat to firefighters and delayed access to some burning areas before teams managed to contain and extinguish the blaze and secure the site, the directorate said.

Civil defense and forestry teams are continuing to monitor the area to prevent any possible resurgence of the fire.

The incident follows another forest fire earlier this week in Kabinah village in Latakia countryside, where civil defense teams worked for more than 10 hours under dangerous conditions to extinguish the blaze.

Civil defense teams said the fire started during a military engineering operation to clear mines in the area before spreading to nearby forest areas and reaching al-Jeb al-Ahmar village.

The Emergency and Disaster Management Ministry has warned that a hot air mass affecting Syria could bring a mild to moderate heatwave from Wednesday through Saturday, increasing the risk of wildfires. It urged residents to avoid starting fires near forested areas.

T.S /ABD