Birth of ‘miracle’ goat defies Turkey’s deadly fires

The farmer lost eight of his livestock but was blessed with newborn kid

When a wildfire spread to his village, Turkish farmer Sercan Bayat shouted at his cows to run from the flames and prayed for his own death rather than witness his animals perish.

Seeing his herd threatened by the inferno – a moment he captured on video – was the most difficult moment in his life, he said.

But although he lost eight of his livestock in the blaze, he later found a newborn goat kid lying helpless, but still breathing, after its mother had died in the fire.

“Two or three hours after the flames were put out, I saw this one on the ground. He is our baby goat now. We called him Miracle,” Mr Bayat, 30, said.

“We found another goat amid the wildfire. She has a baby. There you go. Miracle number two,” Mr Bayat said, and kissed the newest additions.

He said that although his farm in Manavgat, southern Turkey, is severely damaged and he lost some of his animals, he is now “over the moon” at the kids’ survival.

The inferno was one of about 100 fires that officials say broke out this week across southern and western Turkey. Sweltering heat and strong wind fanned the flames.

The death toll from the fires rose to six on Saturday, when two firefighters died during efforts to control the blaze in Manavgat. Thousands of people have fled their homes.

An injured woman sits in front of a burnt house after a massive bushfire engulfed a Mediterranean resort region on Turkey's southern coast, near the town of Manavgat.

An injured man inside what remains of a house after a bushfire engulfed a resort region on Turkey's southern coast, near the town of Manavgat.

A woman puts away belongings in front of a burnt house, near Manavgat.

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, left, and Forestry Minister Bekir Pakdemirli watch from the air as fires burn around Manavgat.

A walks through smoke from burnt out trees near the town of Manavgat.

A woman watches bushfires in Kacarlar village, near the coastal town of Manavgat, Antalya, Turkey.

A woman tries to stop an advancing bushfire in Kacarlar village in Antalya, Turkey.

A man gives water to a rooster during a massive bushfire that engulfed a Mediterranean resort region near Manavgat.

At least six people were reported dead on August 1 as firefighters battled blazes across Turkey's southern coast.

A colour infrared satellite image shows fire lines and crews battling a bushfire near Oymapinar, Turkey.

A forest burns as fires rage along Turkey's southern coast.

A firefighting aircraft drops water to extinguish a massive bushfire near Marmaris, Turkey.

The bushfire destroyed homes but left trees standing.

Tourists watch from the beach as the massive bushfire along Turkey's southern coast takes hold.

The fires destroyed homes and forced people to evacuate settlements and beach resorts.

A hill is left bare of tree cover after a fire passed through.

A man examines the destruction caused by bushfires near Manavgat.

A tree still burns from the inside after a blaze passed through the area.

Authorities evacuated homes as strong winds fanned numerous bushfire along Turkey's coast.

Officials also launched an investigation into suspicions that the fires that broke out to the east of Antalya were the result of arson.

A firefighter tackles a bushfire at Kirli in Turkey's Antalya province.

While bushfires are common in Turkey's Mediterranean and Aegean regions during the arid summer months, some are linked to arson.

More than 4,000 Turkish firefighters were sent across the region to tackle the fires.

Tourists walk the beach as smoke shrouds the sun near Manavgat. Antalya mayor Muhittin Bocek said he suspected foul play as fires started in four places at once.

A cameraman films the blazing forest and scrubland near Manavgat, Turkey.

This photograph shows a forest burning as a massive wildfire engulfed a Mediterranean resort at the Marmaris district of Mugla, on August 1 2021. - At least three people were reported dead on July 29, 2021 and more than 100 injured as firefighters battled blazes engulfing a Mediterranean resort region on Turkey's southern coast. (Photo by Yasin AKGUL / AFP)

Satellite imagery showed smoke from the fires in Antalya and Mersin extended to Cyprus, about 150 kilometres away.

Bushfires are common in southern Turkey in the summer, but local authorities say the latest blazes cover a much bigger area.