Nine villages were evacuated in Türkiye’s western province of Çanakkale due to wildfires, the Turkish Agriculture and Forestry Minister İbrahim Yumaklı said on Tuesday.

President Ersin Tatar conveyed his get well soon wishes regarding the fire that through his social media.

Türkiye on Tuesday briefly suspended shipping traffic along the Dardanelle Strait because of a windswept forest fire near the tourist town of Çanakkale.

The emergency response service said it had evacuated nine villages and was preparing to help people leave three more on Türkiye’s northwestern coast.

“The good news is that the winds seem to be blowing away from the city centre of Çanakkale,” Turkish Agriculture and Forestry Minister İbrahim Yumaklı said in televised comments.

Televised images showed clouds of thick smoke rolling over the edge of the seaside city on Tuesday afternoon.

The fire also forced the evacuation of a local university and closure of a highway running through the blaze.

The Turkish coast guard reopened southbound traffic along the strait after more than two dozen aircraft managed to largely contain the blaze by Tuesday night.

The Dardanelle Strait links the Aegean Sea with the Sea of Marmara and is a popular tourist destination as it is also where the site of the ancient ruins of Troy is located.

The Turkish Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD) said four people were affected by smoke and their treatment is ongoing.

Meanwhile, President Ersin Tatar conveyed his get well soon wishes regarding the fire that occurred in Çanakkale through his social media account.

“I am closely following the disaster with great concern. I hope the fire will be brought under control as soon as possible without any loss of life. I wish strength and ease to the teams working to extinguish the fire. On behalf of myself and the Turkish Cypriot people, I extend my wishes for a speedy recovery,” Tatar posted.