BEIRUT: Wildfires erupted anew in some mountainous areas of Lebanon on Wednesday, a day after rain helped extinguish them, a civil defence volunteer said. Firefights with the help of Lebanese army helicopters managed to putout the blazes in the area of Bewarta, south-east of the capital Beirut, the volunteer said.
Small fires also broke out in the nearby Chouf mountains due to strong winds, Lebanon’s state National News Agency NNA said.
No casualties were reported.
Some 140 fires had raged across Lebanon between Monday and Tuesday, the country’s worst in decades. They were attributed to strong winds and a heatwave that saw temperatures reach 39 degrees Celsius.
On Tuesday, heavy rains came to the aid of firefighters to extinguish most of the wildfires, which swept through mountainous areas southeast of Beirut and in northern Lebanon.
Hectares of green mountainous areas were destroyed by the blazes that also forced some residents to flee their houses.
One volunteer died from suffocation and several civil defence personnel sustained injuries as they were battling the fires on Tuesday, according to health authorities.
The Lebanese Red Cross said they treated some 80 civilians, including children, after they suffered breathing problems since Monday.
Prime Minister Saad Hariri has vowed investigations to determine if some fires had been intentionally ignited. — dpa
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