Our pick of the news from Fethiye and around Turkey over the last week.
News
Forest fires destroy 10,000 hectares in Turkey’s Antalya, one dead
A villager burnt to death and dozens were left homeless as a major forest fire raged in the Mediterranean province of Antalya on Saturday 22 July.
The fire, which broke out on Friday 21 July was fanned by strong winds, destroying part of the village of Karatas, burning down about 60 houses, leaving devastated villagers who fought in vain to save their homes with buckets of water from the wells.
The remains of a man, discovered in the wreckage of a house, was believed to be one of two elderly villagers who had been reported missing since Friday.
The blaze, which destroyed about 4,000 hectares (10,000 acres) of woodlands, broke out after winds reaching up to 70 kilometers per hour (43.5 miles per hour) tore down power lines
“I have dealt my whole life with fires but I have never seen a sight like this,” Mustafa Kurtulmuslu, deputy general manager of Turkey’s forestry directorate, told the Anatolian Agency. “I can say that we are experiencing a catastrophe.”
About 1,300 people, helped by fire-fighting helicopters and airplanes, battled the blaze that raged between Serik district and the coastal town of Manavgat, where several large holiday villages are located.
Aircrafts dropped loads of water to douse the flames amid a thick pall of smoke hanging over the Mediterranean hillsides in what one official described as the worst fire Antalya province had ever faced.
Source: Hürriyet
Blood moon’ dazzles skygazers in Turkey with longest total lunar eclipse of this century
The longest total lunar eclipse of the 21st century took place on Friday, July 27.
Unlike with solar eclipses, you need no special equipment to observe lunar eclipses. These latter events, which occur when the moon passes into Earth’s shadow, are safe to view directly with the naked eye, telescopes or binoculars.
The moon turns deep red or reddish brown during eclipses, instead of going completely dark. That’s because some of the sunlight going through Earth’s atmosphere is bent around the edge of our planet and falls onto the moon’s surface. Earth’s air also scatters more shorter-wavelength light (in colors such as green or blue); what’s left is the longer-wavelength, redder end of the spectrum.
Here are some photographs of the lunar eclipse and blood moon captured in Fethiye by local photographer, Hülya Yamanoğlu
Visit Hülya on Instagram to see more of her photography.
Fethiye’s new traffic helicopter
Traffic control in Fethiye will now be supported by a traffic helicopter.
There is more traffic than ever in the area due to an increase in both the number of people living in Fethiye and local and foreign holidaymakers.
Images and video of incidents or traffic violations, along with the vehicles registration plate, are captured by the helicopter transmitted, via a live feed, to a control point on the ground.
The offending vehicles are then stopped at the control point and fines are issued where applicable.
Police helicopters will be in operation in Fethiye, Bodrum and Marmaris throughout the summer.
Sources: SonDakika/TRT
‘Lucky’ man photographs red lynx in eastern Turkey
A lynx, a wild cat in the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, has been photographed in the eastern Turkish province of Tunceli.
Muzaffer Akyüz, an electrician, was returning from work in Tunceli’s Pülümür district when he spotted the animal on the roadside.
“I had seen lynxes in various areas in this region but I could not photograph them. I was lucky this time as I had my camera. She had two of her babies behind her, but I could not photograph them,” Akyüz told local media.
The first Eurasian lynx in Tunceli was photographed in 2012, when two of them approached urban areas due to heavy snow.
Hunting of the lynx was banned in Turkey in 1990, which helped conservation efforts.
However, threats from legal and illegal logging as well as illegal poaching exists.
Source: Hürriyet Daily News
Şehit Fethi Bey Parkı offfically open
The much-anticipated Şehit Fethi Bey Parkı was officially opened at 19:23 on Thursday evening. If you missed it you can read all about it by clicking on the link below.
Şehit Fethiye Bey Parkı – a very grand opening
Sport
Fethiyespor
Thank you to Brian Lloyd for the Fethiyespor updates.
2018/2019 Fixture List
Click on the link below for the TFF 2 League fixtures for 2018/2019
More transfers for Fethiyespor
Fethiyespor signed a two-year contract with Mahmut Metin, a midfielder and right-winger from Tarsus ll
This week also saw a return to Fethiyespor for mid-fielder, Alican Karadağ from Kardemir Karabükspor. Ailcan played for Fethiyespor during the 2012/2013 season. Alican will wear the old uniform number, 60.
Fethiyespor also extended young goalscorer Anıl Arıcıoğlu’s contract for another two years.
Khalil Kaşlı and stopper Osman Güzeltaş, were also promoted to the professional team. They will join the A team in training at the Bolu camp which starts on Monday.
For more information about Fethiyespor please visit Fethiyespor Yabancilar on Facebook.
Turkish Money
Turkish Lira (TL) exchange rates:
The British Pound bought 6.35 TL by the close of business on Friday. The week before it was selling for 6.28 TL.
The US Dollar bought 4.84 TL by the close of business on Friday. The week before it was selling for 4.79 TL.
The Euro bought 5.64 TL by the close of business on Friday. The week before it was selling for 5.62 TL.
Source: FxexchangeRate.com
Weather Forecast
Here’s your weather forecast for the week ahead.
The post Fethiye Times News – Week Ending 28 July 2018 appeared first on Fethiye Times.