ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A Kurdish environmentalist, who was wounded while attempting to control a recent forest fire in western Iran’s (Rojhelat) Sanandaj, succumbed to his injuries on Wednesday morning.
A large fire erupted in the pastures and forested areas of Sanandaj’s Kamyaran city on Monday. It took scores of volunteers, environmentalist groups, and local authorities to put out the massive blaze the following day.
Ismael Karimi, a 39-year-old employee of Sanandaj’s natural resources department, suffered serious burns while participating in the efforts to extinguish the blaze. He died due to the severity of his injuries on Wednesday.
He is survived by his wife and two children.
Chya the Green Organization, a environmentalist group in Marivan, extended their condolences to Karimi’s family in a statement and claimed arson for the recent fire.
“Relevant authorities and the judiciary must identify and punish those who caused the fire… as soon as possible and find a legal way to fight the looters and environmental gangsters,” read the statement from the group.
The occurrence of forest fires in Rojhelat’s Zagros mountains in summertime has become more regular over the last decade, sparking concerns for the environment and its ecosystems amid claims of arson and blames of government inactivity.
Marivan and nearby areas average about 250 fire incidents every year. In 2010, almost 1,000 separate incidents were recorded. In addition to Marivan, Paveh, Ilam, and Kermanshah have also experienced frequent fires over the past five years.
In 2018, two members of Chya died just outside Marivan as they were trying to control a forest fire with two members of the forestry police. Full statistics on fires and their consequences are not available.
Sina Soma contributed to this report
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