MÊRDÎN- DEM Party Deputy Beritan Güneş, who was one of the first to reach the fire in the area between Amed and Mêrdîn, said: "The police and soldiers had blocked the road. That's why citizens who wanted to extinguish the fire could not reach the fire."

 

In the fire that broke out between Amed's (Diyarbakır-Kurdistan) Xana Axpar (Çınar) and Mêrdîn's (Mardin-Kurdistan) Şemrex (Mazıdağ) districts, 13 people lost their lives and 78 people were affected by the fire. Tobinî and Herberê villages of Xana Axpar district and Kelekê and Dirînê rural neighborhoods of Şemrex were affected by the fire. While eyewitnesses stated that the fire broke out with the contact of electrical wires, failure to intervene in the fire from the air increased its spread and caused the damage to grow.

 

People's Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) Mêrdîn Deputy Beritan Güneş, who went to the fire scene from the first moment with other deputies of her party, stated that they went to Mardin State Hospital after receiving the news of the fire and the injured. Noting that there was great chaos in the first stage, Güneş stated that both the injured and the deceased were brought to the hospital one after the other.

 

'POLICE AND SOLDIERS CLOSED THE ROAD'

 

Reminding that the fire could not be extinguished for a long time, Güneş said: "Since the fire place was a mountainous area, the ambulance and fire brigade could not control the fire there. That's why we quickly asked the helicopter to come to check the fire. Since there were so many injured people, we also contacted the Ministry of Health. We were also getting information from the public, but the roads of the villages were closed. Police and soldiers blocked the road. That's why those who wanted to extinguish the fire could not reach the scene of the fire. Since there were deficiencies in every field, the people found the opportunity to extinguish the fire. But it also caused the lives of the villagers."

 

DEDAŞ PROBLEM FOR 40 YEARS

 

Pointing out that DEDAŞ should be looked into for the cause of this fire, "To undermine this, we need to go back perhaps 40 years. Because there has been a problem called DEDAŞ in these lands for 40 years. Every summer, when planting begins, the DEDAŞ problem begins. This happens when the electricity is cut off. When the electricity is cut off, the water is also cut off. The public also expresses their reaction. No matter who you ask, most of them will give the same answer. In this village, electricity is cut off every hour. Because this electrical system is very old. It was made 40 years ago. The poles are made of wood or the wires are very old. DEDAŞ plays with electricity when it cuts off electricity" Güneş said.

 

'VILLAGERS SUBMITTED A PETITION TO DEDAŞ 3 DAYS AGO'

 

Stating that a fire broke out 3 days ago in places close to the same area, Güneş said: "This is not the first time a fire has occurred in this village. According to the villagers, a fire broke out in this village 3 days ago for the same reason. That's why the villagers went and submitted petitions many times. 'This pole system is from 40 years ago. It's very old and risky. We are planting and there is always a possibility of fire starting from these poles' they said. That's why they applied many times. But no service was provided. Of course, the future of our people has been trampled on again. That's why a new fire started. But this fire is different from other fires due to the wind factor. It's spread a lot. Citizens who want to protect their animals and plantations. They wanted to go and put out the fire. The wind fanned the fire. They were also caught in the fire. In this way, we lost 9 people in this village" Güneş said.

 

'WE ARE TOGETHER WITH OUR PEOPLE'

 

Explaining that they quickly established coordination from the first moment they heard about the fire, Güneş continued as follows: "Since the news of the fire came, both our party, Amed, Mêrdîn, Wan, Şirnex municipalities, our deputies and our people have given great support by doing everything they could voluntarily. This unity gave us strength. We heal our wounds in solidarity. Because until today, the government and the state have not provided any service. There was no response to all our demands, discomforts and petitions. Even after that, we lost a lot of things. That's why we are here with our presence, our solidarity, our strength, we stand by our people. We will be here with everything we can."