The wild fires in central Russia (video,photo)
Forest fires in central Russian regions burned down more than 1200 houses and killed at least 20 people .
Over 270 houses were destroyed in the Voronezh region and about 500 houses burned down in the Nizhny Novogorod region, Novosti news agency reported citing the ministry’s figures.
“Twenty people, including a firefighter, were killed. Twenty-one were hospitalized and over 100 received ambulatory treatment in the Voronezh region,” an spokesman of the Emergencies Ministry said.
Over 2,500 people were evacuated, he added.
In the Nizhny Novogorod region, at least 1662 residents have been evacuated so far from the areas threatened by fast spreading fires.
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has arrived Friday in the Nizhny Novogorod region to assess the situation.
In the Vladimir region, over 100 houses were destroyed. Some 90 houses were burned down in Moscow region.
The ministry has sent 16 aircraft and helicopters and additional firefighting units to fight wild fires in central Russia, as the recorded high temperature brought the worst drought and numerous forest fires across much of western and central Russia.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has ordered the government to take urgent measures to put out fires and to allocate funds for damage compensation.
This is appalls….
