Perilous Times and
Climate Change
Firefighters battle 9 large forest fires in East
Siberia
© RIA Novosti. Oleg Zoloto
Firefighters are battling nine large-scale forest fires on a total
area of 107 hectares in the Irkutsk Region in East Siberia, the
Russian forestry Service said on Sunday.
"According to satellite data, wildfires referred to the category
of large-scale forest fires have been revealed in the Irkutsk
Region," the service said.
Over 161 people and 31 units of firefighting machinery are
involved in combating the raging wildfires, the service said.
Police in the city of Bratsk in the Irkutsk Region have opened
criminal cases in the wake of wildfires that recently covered the
city with thick smoke. The wildfires have caused the resignation
of the acting head of the Bratsk administration, Alexander Tuikov
and led to the concentration of harmful substances in the air
exceeding normal levels.
By Sunday most of the wildfires near Bratsk have been
extinguished. Police have detained 20 people on suspicion of
deliberate arson in forests near Bratsk.
Wildfires across Russia are common during dry and hot summers and
in the fall. Most fires start because of the careless behavior of
local residents.
Forest fires devastated a number of regions in central Russia last
year, killing 62 people and leaving thousands homeless.