Mehmet Erbil is a hero for tortoises at risk. The 69-year-old railroad inspector rose to prominence with his call that circulated on social media for ending the “tragedy” of tortoises stuck in railroads.
In his career of 30 years with the railroad authority, Erbil has saved thousands of tortoises from imminent death under the trains. He now seeks public awareness of the plight of the slow-moving reptiles, especially ending the habit of farmers deliberately putting them on the tracks in a bid to keep them away from their fields.
“I had a 20-kilometer (12-mile) line to inspect every day and tortoises have always been under my watch. I witnessed them vomiting blood and dying under scorching weather on the hot rails,” he recounts. Erbil says he used to carry at least 4 liters of water with him while he was at work to help the exhausted tortoises cool off.
He says tortoises are usually found on railroads in the summer. “They almost turn into fireballs with the blistering sun above and hot iron below. You can’t touch them without gloves,” he said. Erbil recalls how he poured water on them and left them in the shade of trees by the railroad, mostly under trees he himself planted.
Erbil managed to curb the number of tortoises stuck on the tracks by communicating with local farmers and explaining that the animals cannot climb up the 20-centimeter (8-inch) high track to cross the other side of the road. “But we still need more railroad inspectors across Turkey so that more tortoises can be saved. Railroads should also have small entrances where tortoises can safely get to the other side every 200 meters. We also need public service announcements about (the safety of tortoises),” he said.
His love for nature and its inhabitants is inspired by Ahmet Bedevi, better known as “Tarzan of Manisa,” after the western Turkish province he lived in. Bedevi, a legendary environmentalist who led a reclusive life in Manisa before his death in 1963, is known for reforesting the mountains in the region singlehandedly. Erbil was 10 years old when he met Bedevi and planted a pine tree with him. Over the years, Erbil planted some 10,000 trees next to the railroad tracks and on the mountains of Manisa.
