Syria is battling one of its worst wildfire outbreaks in years, with more than 7,000 hectares of forestland in Latakia province scorched since Thursday. Facing relentless heat, strong winds, and the lurking danger of unexploded ordnance, officials on Sunday activated a joint operations center to coordinate the growing firefighting effort—with help now arriving from Turkey and Jordan.
“There’s been a slight improvement overnight,” said Raed al-Saleh, head of Syria’s emergency and disaster management agency, giving firefighters a narrow window to roll out targeted cooling operations. Still, al-Saleh warned, “active hotspots remain,” and the situation is far from under control.
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The terrain isn’t doing anyone any favors. Volunteers are working in blistering heat and rugged hills, often surrounded by the invisible threat of landmines left from years of war. Dozens have suffered injuries from exhaustion, burns, and smoke inhalation. The Syrian Civil Defense reported no fatalities, but seven villages have been evacuated as a precaution.
On the ground, nearly 90 firefighting teams and more than 150 vehicles have been deployed. From the skies, Jordanian helicopters joined the operation Sunday morning, and Turkish units landed a day earlier, bringing two helicopters and 11 firetrucks.
This isn’t the first time Syria’s coastal forests have gone up in flames, but this fire—on this scale, under these conditions—is stretching Syria’s limited emergency capacity. With regional support pouring in, officials are racing against time, weather, and terrain to keep the flames from spreading further into populated areas.