Major wildfire spreads near Jerusalem as heat wave continues – residents evacuated

A rapidly spreading wildfire has engulfed a forested area near Moshav Kaslon, close to the town of Beit Shemesh in central Israel, during an intense heatwave. Approximately 30 firefighting crews have been dispatched to tackle the blaze, with aerial firefighting teams also deployed to combat the escalating emergency. The Israeli Fire and Rescue Service has declared the situation a “fire disaster,” indicating the severity and scale of the incident.

Given the immediate threat posed to nearby residential properties, authorities have begun evacuating homes in the area as a precautionary measure. The evacuation has focused initially on the first row of houses closest to the advancing flames. Emergency services are working to prevent the fire from spreading further towards populated areas.

The wildfire comes as Israel experiences a particularly severe heatwave, which significantly increases both the risk of fires starting and the speed at which they can spread through dried vegetation. Such conditions place enormous strain on firefighting resources across the country, with crews stretched responding to multiple incidents simultaneously during periods of extreme heat.

Source: Ynet — Original article in Hebrew.