Turkey evacuates thousands as firefighters battle wildfires

Firefighters battled wildfires across Turkey on Sunday amid a searing Mediterranean heatwave, with authorities evacuating more than 3,600 people from settlements in two provinces.

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Wildfires in the southern provinces of Mersin and Antalya as well as the central province of Usak were largely brought under control, but blazes in the northwestern province of Bursa and the northern province of Karabuk were still burning, Agriculture and Forestry Minister Ibrahim Yumakli told reporters.

A wildfire broke out in a forested area between the Gursu and Kestel districts of Bursa, home to much of Turkey's auto industry, on Saturday.

Part of a highway connecting Istanbul with the western city of Izmir was briefly closed on Saturday night due to the fire.

Huge flames engulfed trees in areas close to homes in Bursa as smoke covered the sky over the city, footage showed.

Some 1,765 people in Bursa's Kestel district were evacuated, Yumakli said, adding that 2,000 firefighters were struggling to battle the wildfire in the area with the help of six firefighting planes and four helicopters.