The Fires in Latakia and Hama Continue for the Fourth Day... Mass Displacement and Significant Material Losses

Wide areas in the countryside of Latakia and Hama are witnessing an unprecedented rise in forest fires, amid difficult climatic conditions, leading to the flames reaching civilian homes and their agricultural lands, and the beginning of mass displacement from threatened villages.

In the area of Mardash in the Al-Ghab plain northwest of Hama, the fire spread rapidly, reaching civilian homes, while residents are trying to combat the flames using simple tools amid a shortage of firefighting teams.

The nearby villages to the fire axis are experiencing significant population displacement, as residents were forced to leave their homes after suffering severe material losses in their properties.

In the town of Abu Klifoun, the fire has completely gone out of control, reaching homes and agricultural lands.

In the northern countryside of Latakia, new fires broke out in the Kessab area, extending from the village of Al-Shajarah to the Kessab border crossing, causing large areas of forested land to burn.

The Civil Defense Director in Latakia, Abdul Kafi Kiyal, explained that firefighting teams, the Ministry of Emergency, and Disaster Management are making significant efforts to combat the flames, but the rugged terrain, strong winds, dense trees, and lack of water sources, in addition to the danger of mines, make controlling the fires an extremely difficult task.

He added that new hotspots have ignited towards the Al-Nabain and Al-Badrosiya roads, which are areas that had previously experienced a fire about a month ago, confirming that work continues around the clock to prevent the spread of the flames.

Civil defense teams are also dealing with other fires in the areas of Ara and Kafarta in the Kurd Mountain, with the participation of more than six teams, while cooling operations continue in other locations such as Deir Mama, Al-Yamdiya, Al-Ghab, and Anab, amid full mobilization of all personnel.

In Jableh and its countryside, the village of Al-Munizilah witnessed a resurgence of the flames after it had entered a cooling phase, as residents are working with all their might to extinguish the fire.

Fires have also reignited in the village of Rashi near Faqrou, where residents have called on the relevant authorities to intervene quickly to prevent the fire from spreading to the other side of the road.

In light of these conditions, the Minister of Emergency and Disaster Management, Raed Al-Saleh, arrived in the western countryside of Hama to oversee firefighting operations, amid full mobilization of all civil defense, firefighting, and forestry personnel at the provincial level.

In Kessab, the situation has completely spiraled out of control, as residents are unable to contain the flames due to the strong winds, threatening an imminent environmental and humanitarian disaster.

Residents in the Al-Ghab plain, Kessab, Jableh, and the mountainous villages continue to appeal to official authorities and firefighting teams for urgent intervention and to request aerial assistance to control these fires, warning of the flames extending to residential areas and vital agricultural lands.

The situation remains dangerous and open to all possibilities, and an environmental and humanitarian disaster looms on the horizon if the state does not intervene seriously and send more aerial and ground resources to extinguish the fires before it is too late.