Evacuation Experiences of Volunteer Search and Rescue Teams in Forest Fires: 2021 Mediterranean Forest Fires

Yıl 2023, , 829 - 851, 30.09.2023

Musab Süleyman Köçer , Ramazan Aslan

https://doi.org/10.35341/afet.1236021

Cited By: 1

Öz

With the impact of global climate change around the world, forest fires are becoming more frequent and severe, posing an increasing risk for people. Especially for Turkey, the forest fires in 2021 turned into a serious disaster. They started in Manavgat, Antalya on July 28th and continued in many cities simultaneously for about 15 days. According to official statistics published by the General Directorate of Forestry, these fires are considered the biggest crisis in the last 33 years (1988-2021), with approximately 140,000 hectares of land burned. This study is a cumulative evaluation of the 2021 forest fires in terms of management, intervention, and organizational work, which is a turning point. The phenomenological design was used as a qualitative research method in the study. Participants were selected using the criterion and snowball sampling techniques. The criterion was "volunteer search and rescue personnel who participated in intervention and evacuation activities during fires." The data obtained were analyzed thematically with the Maxqda 2022 software. As a result of the interviews, it was determined that the success of evacuation activities during forest fires was negatively affected by factors such as the spatial affiliations of individuals to be evacuated, their distrust of institutions, and economic concerns. Another finding was the effects of fires and evacuation activities on search and rescue volunteers. Volunteers encountered life-threatening dangers during this process and were exposed to psychologically traumatic events.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Disaster, Disaster Volunteers, Evacuation, Forest Fire, Mediterranean

Gönüllü Arama Kurtarma Ekiplerinin Orman Yangınlarındaki Tahliye Deneyimleri: 2021 Akdeniz Orman Yangınları

Öz

Tüm dünyada küresel iklim değişikliğinin de etkisiyle, sıklığı ve büyüklüğü artan orman yangınları her geçen gün daha fazla insan için risk oluşturmaktadır. Özellikle Türkiye açısından bu riskin ciddi bir afete dönüştüğü 2021 yılındaki orman yangınları ilk olarak 28 Temmuz’da Antalya/Manavgat’ta başlayıp birçok şehirde aynı anda devam ederek yaklaşık 15 gün kadar sürmüştür. Orman Genel Müdürlüğü’nün yayımlamış olduğu resmi istatistiklere göre bu yangınlar, yaklaşık 140 bin hektar alanın yanması ile son 33 yılın (1988-2021) en büyük afeti olarak nitelendirilir. Bu önemle mevcut çalışma; yönetim, müdahale ve organizasyon çalışmaları açısından dönüm noktası niteliğindeki 2021 yılı orman yangınlarının kümülatif açıdan değerlendirilmesini içerir. Araştırmada nitel araştırma yöntemlerinden fenomenolojik desen kullanılmıştır. Katılımcılar ölçüt ve kartopu örnekleme tekniği ile belirlenmiştir. Ölçüt olarak, “Yangınlarda müdahale ve tahliye faaliyetlerine katılmış gönüllü arama kurtarma personeli olmak” alınmıştır. Elde edilen veriler Maxqda 2022 yazılımı ile tematik analize tabi tutulmuştur. Görüşmeler neticesinde orman yangınlarında tahliye faaliyetlerinin başarısının tahliye edilecek bireylerin mekânsal bağlılıkları, kurumlara güvensizlikleri ve ekonomik kaygıları gibi etkenlerden olumsuz etkilendiği saptanmıştır. Diğer bulgu ise yangın ve tahliye faaliyetlerinin arama kurtarma gönüllüleri üzerindeki etkileridir. Gönüllüler bu süreçte yaşamı tehdit edici tehlikeler ile karşılaşmış ve psikolojik olarak travmatik olaylara maruz kalmışlardır.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Afet, Afet Gönüllüleri, Akdeniz, Orman Yangını, Tahliye

Kaynakça

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