A fire broke out in the scrubland in the village of Behram for reasons that have not yet been determined, and it spread towards the coastal area due to the effect of the wind. Upon notification, Ayvacık Forestry Enterprise teams and Ayvacık Municipality firefighters were dispatched to the area. With the support of the villagers, efforts to extinguish the fire were initiated.
While the teams continue their work in the area, a bulldozer caught in the flames was burned and rendered unusable. In the fire that grazed the Assos Excavation House, the grass and bushes in the Assos Ancient City were burned. The fire, which was partially brought under control through the intervention of 10 planes and 5 helicopters, 20 bulldozer-water tankers, 5 initial response vehicles, 4 dozers, 4 trailers, 10 vehicles belonging to other institutions, and a total of 225 personnel, damaged approximately 31 hectares of scrubland and grassland in the area.
The cooling efforts in the area where approximately 31 hectares of scrubland and grassland were damaged are ongoing. The Governor of Çanakkale, Ilhami Aktaş, also visited the region, inspected the area, and received information from the officials. Aktaş stated to the press that the fire, which the teams intervened quickly, did not spread to either the village or the Ancient Harbor. He mentioned that a forestry organization bulldozer burned in the fire, saying: “In the meantime, the teams were also caught in the fire. Our colleagues rescued themselves, but the bulldozer burned. There was such a serious struggle. Thanks to this struggle, it was prevented from reaching both our village and the Ancient Harbor. We need to be on high alert in both the village and the Ancient Harbor. There is a bit of wind. We need to be on high alert until we completely control it and finish the cooling work. There is no damage to any structure, cultural, or historical asset in the Assos Ancient City. Only a grass fire occurred in the scrubland surrounding it. We have no loss in terms of our cultural asset.”
As a precaution, the village and hotels were evacuated. Aktaş highlighted that Ayvacık District Governor Salih Sak initially arrived at the fire scene and said, “We also arrived as quickly as possible. As a precaution, the village and hotels were evacuated. We want our villagers, especially our guests and hotel guests in the Ancient Harbor, not to return until the forestry organization declares that it is completely under control. We need to be on high alert for a while longer.” Aktaş also added that the teams took precautions with bulldozers around the excavation house in the Ancient City and prevented it from spreading there. Governor Aktaş was accompanied by Provincial Police Chief Selim Arıcı, Provincial Gendarmerie Commander Colonel Sadi Akman, Regional Forestry Director Enver Demirci, and District Governor Salih Sak.
