A stubble burning caused panic in the Hevsel Gardens in Amed. The flames quickly spread in the 7,000-year-old valley and could only be contained by the effective intervention of the fire brigades.
A stubble burning caused panic in the historic Hevsel Gardens in the city of Amed on Sunday. Apparently triggered by field work, meter-high clouds of smoke rose above the bird paradise of Kurdistan as a result of the fire. The authorities do not rule out negligent behaviour.
The stubble burning was extinguished thanks to the effective intervention of the fire brigades, who prevented the fire from spreading any further.
The Hevsel Gardens are around 700 hectares of fertile, cultivated area between the Tigris and the millennia-old city walls of Amed. They are located not far from the mighty Keçi Burcu, the goat tower, and were declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2015, together with the city wall.
The Hevsel Gardens are among the most fertile areas in the region, traditionally used to supply the population with water and food. Numerous springs are found under the basalt. The gardens extend over the Tigris Shire in five terraces. The Hevsel Gardens were first described in Aramaic scripts 2900 years ago. It is estimated, however, that the gardens are up to 7,000 or 8,000 years old. In the Hevsel Gardens alone there are 181 different species of birds and many different plants and animals.
