- Title: Lebanese people come together as wildfires abate
- Date: 16th October 2019
- Summary: MECHREF, LEBANON (OCTOBER 16, 2019) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF BURNT TREES ON MAIN STREET VARIOUS OF BURNT WOODS LEBANESE CIVIL DEFENSE MEMBERS GATHERING ON BREAK AFTER EXTINGUISHING FIRES VARIOUS OF VOLUNTEERS DISTRIBUTING FOOD TO FIREFIGHTERS / FIREFIGHTERS EATING SAADIYAT, LEBANON (OCTOBER 16, 2019) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) MUNICIPALITY POLICE, YOUSSEF CHARAFEDDINE, SAYING: "We came in huge numbers here. People brought hundreds of water trucks to help us, we helped the civil defense and were able to contain the fire despite its magnitude." MECHREF, LEBANON (OCTOBER 16, 2019) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF FIREFIGHTERS EATING AND DRINKING / VOLUNTEERS DISTRIBUTING WATER SAADIYAT, LEBANON (OCTOBER 16, 2019) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) MUNICIPALITY POLICE, YOUSSEF CHARAFEDDINE, SAYING: "Everyone was excited, some were working, some were bringing food, and others bringing water. We had an excess of food and water, as well as of water to extinguish fires. We had a surplus. Honestly, people showed their decency and big heartiness, the whole atmosphere was all good." MECHREF, LEBANON (OCTOBER 16, 2019) (REUTERS) CIVIL DEFENSE MEMBERS EATING PIZZA AND DRINKING JUICE VARIOUS OF CIVIL DEFENSE VEHICLES DRIVING AWAY TO ANOTHER LOCATION DEBBIYE, LEBANON (OCTOBER 16, 2019) (REUTERS) (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) RESIDENT, HUSSEIN JABBAR, SAYING: "The fire came from down there and went all up in this mountain, eating everything. What can I tell you? Which tragedies should I tell you about? People started running away from their houses, all leaving this place." MECHREF, LEBANON (OCTOBER 16, 2019) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF BURNT WOODS SAADIYAT, LEBANON (OCTOBER 16, 2019) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF VOLUNTEERS WITH DAFA CAMPAIGN DISTRIBUTING FOOD TO CIVIL DEFENSE MEMBERS AND PEOPLE HELPING ON THE GROUND VARIOUS OF MUNICIPALITY POLICE DISTRIBUTING FOOD VARIOUS OF PIZZA BOXES PLACED ON TOP OF VEHICLE VARIOUS OF CIVIL DEFENSE MEMBERS GATHERING ON BREAK / SMOKE RISING FROM VALLEY VARIOUS OF AIRCRAFT USED IN EXTINGUISHING REMAINING FIRES BEIRUT, LEBANON (OCTOBER 16, 2019) (REUTERS) NEWSPAPERS KIOSK
- Embargoed: 30th October 2019 17:18
- Keywords: Lebanon fire Lebanon wildfire Lebanon firefighters Lebanese wildfire environment climate change
- Location: MECHREF, SAADIYAT, DEBBIYE AND BEIRUT, LEBANON
- City: MECHREF, SAADIYAT, DEBBIYE AND BEIRUT, LEBANON
- Country: Lebanon
- Topics: Disaster/Accidents,Fires
- Reuters ID: LVA001B1CKW9H
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: As Lebanese civil defense members and firefighting aircrafts continued to put out what was left of the country's wildfires on Wednesday (October 16), volunteers came to their side to offer food, drinks and support.
As firefighters worked in Saadiyat, south of Beirut on Wednesday, residents in the area came and helped them.
Volunteers with Dafa campaign distributed food, water and drinks - as they have been doing since Tuesday morning when the wildfires picked up in the country.
Hundreds of fires have swept across the country since Monday. The fires started to fade out after rainfall hit most affected areas on Tuesday night.
The flames burned swathes of forest and killed at least one person, prompting Beirut to deploy water cannons and to call on neighbouring countries like Cyprus and Greece for help.
Municipality police member in Saadiyat and Chouf area, Youssef Charafeddine, described how Lebanese people spontaneously came together in the past two days to fight the fires in unity.
Dafa volunteers rushed to help on Tuesday and were still providing some nutrition and medical aid on Wednesday.
A Dafa campaign coordinator explained how an operation room was set up on Tuesday in response to the wildfires.
The cause of the flames, which has spread from woods south of Beirut up to pine forests in the north, remains unknown, though some officials have blamed an autumn heatwave that hit the country in recent days.
In Beirut, newspapers kiosk displayed today's papers - all with headlines commenting on the fires.
One citizen, Ghassan Salman, walking in Hamra street, said people's hearts "burnt with the fires", adding that he was grateful for Tuesday night's rain.
(Production: Alaa Kanaan, Ahmad El Kerdi, Imad Creidi, Yara Abi Nader) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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