Flames that threatened a coal-fired power station in Turkey's fire-ravaged southwest have been extinguished, local authorities said on Thursday (August 5) after workers and residents were evacuated overnight by ship when a fire broke out in the plant's grounds, Reuters reports.
"When we were going back to camp, we saw the fire was nearing the power plant, so we grabbed our bags in a panic and returned," one of the workers Sadik Akin, told Reuters as he recounted moments of panic.
Firefighters continued to battle blazes which President Tayyip Erdogan has described as the worst Turkey has suffered, devastating tens of thousands of hectares of forest and forcing thousands of Turks and tourists to flee.
Eight people have died since the fires first broke out last week and environmentalists had warned of fresh danger as the flames encroached on the power plant.
