TUNIS (Anadolu)

Tunisian firefighting teams managed on Wednesday to control a fire that broke out in areas of Jendouba governorate in the northwest of the country, after destroying more than 30 hectares of forests, causing damage to homes and the death of a number of animals.

The official Tunisian news agency quoted sources from the Regional Committee for Combating Disasters and Organizing Rescue (governmental), as well as affected people and eyewitnesses, that civil protection, forestry, and national army teams, supported by volunteers, completed the control of a fire that broke out Tuesday evening in areas belonging to the delegations of Fernana and Balta Bou Awan.

The sources reported that the fire caused damage to the surroundings of a number of houses, and caused damage to some of them, and also led to the burning of more than 30 hectares of forests, the death of a number of animals, and the burning of quantities of dry fodder and firewood.

Eyewitnesses explained that the flames spread to a number of villages, including Wadi al-Tut, al-Shaghir, Sidi Hamida, and al-Shawaula, areas located near the Bouhertma dam and experiencing recurring fires, but they confirmed that the current fire is one of the largest in terms of area and extent of losses.

A video clip broadcast by official Tunisian television on Wednesday showed a military aircraft participating in fire extinguishing operations and limiting its spread.

On Tuesday, Colonel Mohsen Bougazala, head of the Continuity Department of Operations at the General Directorate of Civil Protection, confirmed that "civil protection units were able to fully control the forest fires that recently broke out in four governorates, after continuous field interventions that coincided with the heatwave the country is witnessing."

Bougazala added, in a statement to the private radio station 'Diwan FM', that all fires entered the monitoring phase after the completion of extinguishing and cooling operations, with field teams continuing to be stationed in anticipation of renewed ignition.

He pointed out that the most prominent fires broke out on July 11, 2026 in Jabal al-Shahma in Zaghouan governorate, along with other fires in the governorates of Siliana, Beja, and Kef.

He noted that preliminary estimates indicate that more than 400 hectares were damaged by the Jabal al-Shahma fire, pending completion of field surveys to determine the final toll.

Tunisia has been experiencing a high heatwave for days, prompting civil protection to repeatedly call on citizens to be cautious, warning that record temperatures, drought, and hot winds create favorable conditions for the outbreak of rapidly spreading fires.