Firefighters were battling a strong forest fire in Turkey’s Aegean city of Izmir for a third day on Saturday, AFP reporters said, a day after hundreds of local people in nearby villages had to be evacuated.

Firefighters said they had partially beaten back the flames that have been threatening the port city over the last three days, although fires were still burning in the nearby forests.

In the northern suburb of Ornekkoy, AFP journalists saw the charred remains of several buildings and vehicles in an industrial zone while grey smoke billowed into the sky.

“We don’t know what to do. Our workplace is located in the middle of the fire. We have lost our livelihood,” said 48-year-old Hanife Erbil, who earns a living collecting paper and plastic waste.

The pine trees that once crowned the surrounding hills were also burned.