ANKARA (Reuters) – Maritime traffic from the Aegean Sea to the Sea of Marmara has been suspended due to the ongoing forest fire in the Turkish northwestern province of Canakkale, the transport ministry and a shipping agency said on Tuesday.
“The traffic at Dardanelles was suspended for both directions on Tuesday at 18:45 (1545 GMT) hours due to the aircraft intervening in the forest fire in the region by safely taking water from the sea,” Tribeca shipping agency said.
The Dardanelles Strait, a narrow and historically significant passage connecting the Aegean Sea to the Black Sea, serves as a vital shipping route for vessels travelling between Europe and Asia.
“Tugboats are prepared to intervene if the fire approaches the seafront, providing additional support to the ongoing firefighting operations,” the Transport Ministry said in a statement.
(Reporting by Ece Toksabay; Editing by Bill Berkrot)
