The Royal New Zealand Returned and Services Association (RNZRSA) has thanked Turkish firefighters for their efforts following a Turkish forest fire at Canterbury Cemetery on the Gallipoli Peninsula.
New Zealand soldiers from the First World War are buried in the cemetery.
RNZRSA National President Sir Wayne “Buck” Shelford said his thoughts and those of the RNZRSA community were “with the people of Turkey battling the fires on the Gallipoli Peninsula”.
“We are incredibly grateful to local authorities and firefighters for doing everything in their power to contain the fires and limit the damage to the sacred sites and monuments around Anzac Cove.
Emergency services are working to “limit damage to sacred sites and monuments around Anzac Cove.” (Source: 1News)
“I had the great privilege of attending the Anzac Day ceremonies on Gallipoli earlier this year and the thought that this event was under threat was heartbreaking.
“We will continue to monitor the situation and work out the next steps once the full extent of the damage in the region is known.”
The fire is now under control, the Associated Press reported.
The trigger was a spark from power lines that spread through wooded areas, officials said.
A spokesman for New Zealand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) outlined the damaged area, saying there was “no damage to the monuments at Chunuk Bair, including the New Zealand National Monument”, but “some fire damage to the belt of trees and shrubs at the New Zealand Number 2 Outpost cemetery, as well as to some trees near the northern entrance to the Anzac Commemorative Site where the Dawn Service is held each year”.
“The rest of the site is unaffected.”
It said the MFAT was in contact with the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and Turkish authorities and its thoughts were with Turkey “as they have responded to a number of wildfires”.
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC), which looks after the graves, has expressed its “deep concern” about the fires that have devastated “historic areas” of the Gallipoli peninsula.
“Our top priority is the safety of the people in the region and we can confirm that all of our staff have been evacuated from the peninsula and are safe,” it said in a statement yesterday.
“The CWGC looks after the graves and memorials of Commonwealth casualties of the First World War in over 30 cemeteries on the Gallipoli Peninsula.
“We understand that this news may cause shock, particularly to those who have a personal connection to the deceased, but any damage is being assessed and work to repair it will begin as quickly as possible.”
The organization said its thoughts were “with our colleagues, their families and the wider communities affected by the fires, as well as those who have a personal connection to those we commemorate on the Gallipoli peninsula.”
“The CWGC would like to express our deepest gratitude to those who are fighting to ensure the safety of local people and villages and to limit the damage to memorial sites of all nations.”
According to the CWGC, updates will be provided as they become available.
Our thoughts are with those who “look after our sons”
Mark Compain, chairman of the RNZRSA’s memorial committee, spoke to 1News. His great-grandfather was stationed at Gallipoli in 1915.
Compain, also a returned soldier and fifth-generation soldier, said his and the RSA’s main concern was for the people of Turkey “who earn their living and look after our sons on the peninsula – they and the brave firefighters who are fighting against them deserve our deepest sympathy.”
“We would like to convey our thoughts and prayers to them.”
Compain and RSA official historian Andrew MacDonald have been in contact with “a number of agencies”, including CWGC, the Department of Culture and Heritage and NZ Deaths.
“On the whole, we can say that things seem to be OK in the old, original ANZAC sector. But the country north of Russell’s Top, towards the battlefields of the August campaign, appears to have been hit quite badly by the fires from the photographs and the incomplete reports we have received.”
“The cemeteries and monuments in this area have been damaged, but it appears that this is only damage on the ground – the headstones and the monuments themselves are deliberately built from non-combustible material, and as with similar fires, I am sure they will be re-piled.”
Despite the “scorched” earth, the gravestones were “not significantly” damaged, according to Compain.
“What I have seen of the damage from the 1994 fires are the tombstones that were bought back in their original condition by the Turkish workers for the CWGC, so I am sure they will do the same for us again.”
In 1994, fires broke out in the same area, destroying around 4,000 hectares of land.
Compain said one of the biggest concerns right now is the “unavoidable” possibility that the fire will unearth the remains of military personnel.
“We will seek assurances that the remains will be treated respectfully and returned.”
He said it was “heartbreaking” to see the damage in the area.
“Gallipoli is a piece of home for me… I feel very connected spiritually and emotionally.”
“I feel a strong emotional connection to it and anything that damages or disturbs it affects me deeply. It is a place of great suffering and immense death and destruction, and there has been plenty of that. I want the spirits and souls of all those who served and fought there to rest in peace.”
