Five individuals have died and numerous were injured – ten in critical condition – as a result of the wildfires that went ablaze in villages in southeastern Turkey's Diyarbakir and Mardin regions overnight, according to the Turkish health minister on Friday.

As the summer approaches, temperatures are already on a skyrocketing incline, leaving wildfires as a matter of time – not if, but when. 

Health Minister Fahrettin Koca posted on X: "Five people lost their lives and 44 were injured, with 10 in critical condition," adding that four emergency teams and 35 ambulances were dispatched to the affected areas.

Diyarbakır’ın Çınar ilçesinin Köksalan mahallesi ve Yazçiçeği köyü ile Mardin’in Mazıdağı ilçesi Yücebağ ve Yetkinler köyünde meydana gelen yangında 5 kişi hayatını kaybetti, 10’u ağır 44 kişi yangından etkilendi. Diyarbakır’da 3, Mardin’de 2 can kaybımız var. Olay sebebi ile 35…

— Dr. Fahrettin Koca (@drfahrettinkoca) June 21, 2024

That was followed by a post from Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya who explained that the fire broke out late Thursday in an area approximately 30 kilometers south of Diyarbakir, before spreading rapidly due to strong winds and impacting five villages.

"Unfortunately three citizens of the Diyarbakir area and two in the Mardin area lost their lives," he wrote on X.

Diyarbakır İli Çınar ilçesi Köksalan Kırsal Mahallesinde saat 22:15’te anız ile örtü yangını olarak başlayan ve rüzgârın şiddetiyle Yazçiçeği, Bağrık ve Ağaçsever mahallelerini etkileyen yangın,

Mardin Mazıdağı ilçesi Yücebağ, Şenyuva ve Yetkinler mahallesi istikametine doğru…

— Ali Yerlikaya (@AliYerlikaya) June 21, 2024

Update:

The number of people killed in wildfires that swept through several villages in Turkey's southeast has risen to 11, the health minister said on Friday.

"11 people lost their lives" when the fires hit several villages in Mardin and Diyarbakir provinces, Fahrettin Koca wrote on X.