Forest fire in Btormaz, Dinnieh that broke out in March. (Courtesy of Michel Hallak/L'Orient Today)
BEIRUT — Lebanon will face increased fire risk on Friday as the country witnesses "hot and dry weather accompanied by strong winds," caretaker Environment Minister Nasser Yassin warned in a statement.
Yassin said regions in North Lebanon, South Lebanon, Akkar, Baalbeck and the western Bekaa will be particularly affected by "the danger of rapidly spreading fires today."
With Lebanon’s dry season on the way and global data indicating this past March as the planet’s second-warmest on record, Lebanese forests are at “increased fire risk,” experts told L’Orient Today last month.
A fire index map documenting potential danger zones for risks of fires across Lebanon. (Credit: National Council for Scientific Research in Lebanon)
Yassin has previously L'Orient Today the biggest concern this year lies in the local responses to upcoming fires.
On Friday, he called on citizens to avoid starting fires "in areas adjacent to forests and forests for any reason, and to immediately report any source of fire near or inside the forests," so that authorities can intervene to prevent the spread of fire, "which poses a threat to public safety and the environment in general."
On Friday afternoon, A wildfire broke out in a forest near Saida, South Lebanon, L'Orient Today's correspondent in the area reported.
Rescue teams have been trying to extinguish the fire in the al-Bahiliya forests in the town of al-Kharaib, south of Saida, since the early morning but the fire has continued to spread, according to our correspondent.
Lebanon’s wildfire season usually begins later in the year, but the country has already experienced wildfires in 2023, including a major blaze in the north in March that first responders struggled to control.
The north and Akkar are particularly prone to forest fires and are home to large swaths of forested areas. Civil Defense teams and volunteer groups often intervene to extinguish fires but face shortages of equipment due to Lebanon's economic crisis.
Reporting contributed by Muntasser Abdallah
