490 Forest Fires Registered in Russia

Of the 490 forest fires raging on the Russian territory, 141 were registered during the past 24 hours. The firefighting effort involves more than 7,000 people, 1,163 pieces of ground-based equipment, and 69 aircraft.

The largest number of forest fires was registered in the Siberian regions, including the Chita region /181 fires/, Buryatia /107/, and the Irkutsk region /66/, a source in the Information Department of the Russian Emergencies Ministry told RIA Novosti on Monday. The number of fires burning in Russia's Far East, i.e. in Primorye, in the Khabarovsk Territory, in the Amur region, and in the Jewish Autonomous Region, varies between 10 and 20.

Over the past 24 hours, fire burned out more than 26,000 hectares of Russian forests.