We continue our round up of the local news from Fethiye, Muğla and surrounding area.

Heart Attack Could Have Been Cause of Drivers Death

A 59-year-old man from Çiftlik was driving back alone from Denizli early in the week, when his car hit large rocks at the side of the road in Üzümlü, and burst into flames.

The car was running on LPG, and the blaze was put out by the local Forestry Commission fire service.

The body of Zeki Alıkma, the driver, was sent to Izmir for a post mortem.

A friend of his told press that Zeki had already had a heart attack, and he believed the crash was caused by another, fatal, attack.

Nile Turtle Found Dead in the Gulf of Fethiye

Of course we all know we live in an area where loggerhead turtles are found, but this week a Nile Turtle was found dead in the Gulf of Fethiye.

Originating in the Nile River in Egypt, these turtles are now spread throughout the Mediterranean, and apparently nest near Dalaman.

The dead turtle was lifted from the sea and taken to the Animal Welfare Centre for an autopsy.

Observers at the scene said it would no doubt reveal the animal was a victim of swallowed fishing line, or other plastic material.

Missing Girls Found

On 31 May three young girls from Çiftlik, two aged 16 and one only 14, walked out of their homes and disappeared.

Families searched and eventually called in the Jandarma.

'Missing' posters with images of the three were pasted up all over Fethiye and Antalya and this week, thanks to those images, the girls were found in Kaş and returned to their homes.

Four people have been arrested in connection with the girls' disappearance.

Election Promises

We do try to avoid Turkish politics here, but with the general election fever of late we feel we should report that the leader of the CHP (People's Republican Party, the Party founded by Atatürk) Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu gave a rousing speech in Fethiye this week in the final days of campaigning.

If elected he said he would make Fethiye a province.

Grand Designs

And in the interests of balance we should also tell you that the AKP (the party in power) candidate for Muğla, Ali Boğa, was also in town during the week with his own promises. He announced that he intended to re-open an old drainage tunnel that runs from Boncuklu Bay to the current boatyard in Karagözler.

He said the tunnel is big enough to allow a person to walk through it, but he will expand it so water from the open sea can be brought into the bay.

Not only will this keep the water in the bay fresher but, according to Mr. Boğa, it will lower the temperature in Fethiye by 2 – 3 degrees.

He will also ensure the chair lift to the top of Babadağ is built.

In fact he has a whole list of projects lined up to turn Fethiye into a globally renowned town by 2023 – the hundredth anniversary of the foundation of the Turkish Republic.