An Aberdeen teacher said she has “never been so scared” after being caught up in a major wildfire in south-western Turkey.
Speaking to BBC Scotland, Amy Hutchinson described the terror she felt when facing the fires.
She was one of hundreds forced to evacuate their homes as nearly 100 separate blazes have hit tourist resorts and villages on Turkey’s Mediterranean and Aegean coasts.
The fires. which started on July 28 have been responsible for killing eight people, as a result, investigators are trying to establish the cause of the fires.
‘It just happened so quickly’
Working as a teacher in the town of Içmeler near the resort of Marmaris, the 26-year-old evacuated her home last Thursday but returned the next day.
However, the fires closest to her apartment have since started again.
Speaking to BBC Scotland, she said: “We are completely surrounded by greenery here in Içmeler and Marmaris. The fires started and it’s just not stopping.
“It just happened so quickly – within 10 minutes we were completely surrounded by red fire. I’ve never been so scared.”
She added: “We left five minutes before they told everyone to evacuate because we could see it was getting very bad. It was completely around us.
“It looked like a war zone. The sky was completely red. The ash was like snow falling on to the ground.”
Ms Hutchinson and many people in the town congregated on its main beach and then got a boat to Marmaris to be safer.
Many villagers lost homes and farm animals
Turkish firefighters were battling for the sixth straight day to control the blazes tearing through forests near Turkey’s beach destinations.
Fed by strong winds and scorching temperatures, the fires that began on Wednesday have left eight people dead and forced residents and tourists to flee vacation resorts in a flotilla of small boats.
Many villagers lost homes and farm animals and had trouble breathing amid the heavy smoke.
Agriculture and forestry minister Bekir Pakdemirli said crews were still tackling seven fires in the coastal provinces of Antalya and Mugla that are popular tourist areas.
Other active fires were in Isparta, 236 miles northeast, in Denizli province in southwest Turkey.
Another fire in Tunceli, in southeast Turkey, was contained on Monday, the minister said.
In all, 129 fires that broke out in over 30 provinces since Wednesday have been extinguished.
“We are going through days when the heat is above 40 C (104 degrees Fahrenheit), where the winds are strong and humidity is extremely low,” Mr Pakdemirli said.
“We are struggling under such difficult conditions.”
At least 13 settlements in Mugla were fully or partially evacuated, the minister said.
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