Turkish volunteer struggles to save sheep burned by fire July 10, 2024

Hasan Kizil volunteers to treat animals injured in a fire (Yasin AKGUL)

By AFP - Agence France Presse

Turkish volunteer struggles to save sheep burned by fire

Anne CHAON

Lying on its back, the sheep struggled as the man approached to bandage its udders, which had been burned in a fire last month that killed hundreds of sheep in southeastern Turkey.

Since the fire, Hasan Kizil has been driving his van along mountainous roads, treating traumatized animals and convincing farmers not to sell injured sheep to the slaughterhouse.

The fire hit the southeastern towns of Diyarbakir and Mardin on June 22, causing 15 deaths. Experts pointed to faulty electrical wiring as a possible cause.

More than 1,000 sheep and goats died in the fire, according to the Agriculture Ministry, including those in the Mazidagi area, 36 kilometers (22 miles) from Mardin.

"Most of them had their eyes completely closed, too swollen to see in front of them," said the 29-year-old, who largely learned to look after the animals himself, while treating the burns on their blackened hooves and udders.

"If it had gone on for a few more days, the spoiled milk would have caused septicemia," he said, referring to blood poisoning by bacteria. "We almost lost them."

- 'I love my animals' - you

Every day, Kizil voluntarily visits farms to monitor the animals and convince farmers to keep their damaged herds.

Caring for injured and unproductive animals is a heavy burden for the young farmer, who owes 27,000 Turkish liras (US$ 825) to the bank, as well as paying for medicines and hay.

Former kebab seller Mehmet Celebioglu, in his 30s, went into debt to buy 160 sheep and a few goats. Now, there are only around 40 left: sheep unable to produce milk and young goats orphaned by the fire.

"They were lying in the fields when the fire started. 120 sheep burned on the spot. Their eyes melted... that's all that's left," he said.

"My brothers risked their lives to save them," added his 18-year-old sister Gulistan, recalling how the fire cut off the electricity and water supply while the hot wind blew over the hills.

But selling the remaining stock is not an option for Celebioglu, who hails from Adana, a large city in the south of the country.

"Sell? They would pay me 2,000 to 3,000 lira," he said.

"I spent two years teaching myself this job and, above all, I love my animals."

-'Battlefield'-

The farmers' attachment to their sheep has encouraged Kizil to support them and to help disaster victims, as he did after treating injured animals following the great earthquake that hit south-east Turkey in February 2023, killing 55,000 people.

Now a local star on Instagram, he is known for making braces and prostheses for disabled animals. More than 240,000 followers follow his work rehabilitating injured foxes, cats and birds.

Recalling the night of the fire, he said: "It was a battlefield around here."

"The butchers were trying to catch the injured animals and slaughter them, while we were trying to keep them alive."

The images of the animals prompted veterinarians from several towns to rush to the scene voluntarily.

The municipality of the predominantly Kurdish city of Diyarbakir received injured animals at its shelter, while others were sent to clinics in Izmir (western Turkey), Adana and Istanbul.

"We're still struggling," said Kizil, in a region where agriculture and livestock are the mainstay of the economy.

Applying ointment to the sheep's black wounds, he added: "If we can get the udders back, they will be saved."

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