Forest fire in Turkey prompts evacuation of 410 people

Ankara, Sep 8 A forest fire broke out in the Gulnar district of Turkey's Mersin province, prompting local authorities to evacuate 410 people from 110 homes.

In an address to the media on Wednesday, Mersin Governor Ali Hamza Pehlivan said that no injuries or major house damage had been reported, adding that "only an abandoned building in the forest area was burned".

Firefighters continued tackling the blaze after aircraft and ground crews were dispatched to the region, Xinhua news agency quoted the Governor as saying.

The reason for the fire was still not clear, but the state-run Anadolu news agency reported that strong wind spread the fire to settlement areas.

The fire area is also close to the construction site of the Akkuyu nuclear power plant in Mersin.

Firefighters have been struggling to prevent the blaze from reaching the busy Mediterranean highway connecting Mersin and Antalya.