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Tunisia recorded at least 900 fires in just 72 hours as an intense heatwave swept across the country, forcing authorities to seek international assistance to contain major wildfires still burning in the north-west.
Civil protection official, Khalil Mechri, said the blazes, recorded between 20 and 22 July, were not limited to forests but also affected brushland, crops and homes.
“These are not only forest fires but also brushland, crops, houses,” Mechri said, adding that most of the fires had been extinguished, although two major wildfires remained active.
Africanews reports that Tunisia has enlisted the help of neighbouring countries to combat the fires, with an Italian firefighting aircraft joining two Algerian planes in efforts to contain one of the largest blazes in the north-western region of Sakiet Sidi Youssef.
Read more: Tunisia heatwave pushes temperatures near 50°C
Colonel-Major of Civil Protection, Seif Eddine Dekhlaoui, said authorities were hopeful that improving weather conditions would help firefighters gain control of the flames.
“We requested international assistance, and at the moment one Italian plane and two Algerian planes are helping to put out the fire,” Dekhlaoui said.
“The flames are still present. We hope that in the coming hours, the situation gets better, with wind speeds dropping and flames reducing on all fronts,” he added.
The wave of fires has coincided with exceptionally high temperatures that have scorched much of the North African nation. On Tuesday, temperatures ranged between 40 and 49 degrees Celsius, exceeding seasonal averages by between 8 and 14 degrees.
The extreme heat has also strained the country’s electricity network, prompting authorities to introduce daily planned power cuts to reduce pressure on the national grid.
According to Mechri, the fires have been fuelled by unusually large amounts of dried vegetation following an exceptionally rainy winter, creating ideal conditions for flames to spread rapidly.
Meanwhile, Tunisia’s Director General of Forests, Mohamed Noufel Ben Haha, said about 4,400 hectares of forestland had been destroyed by fire between 1 May and 23 July, compared with 2,705 hectares during the same period last year.
Ben Haha attributed the sharp rise in wildfires to a combination of human negligence, criminal acts and the prolonged spell of extreme heat that continues to affect the country.
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