Residents Offer Flowers and Thanks to Firefighters Who Eliminated Wildfires in Eastern Ukraine

Residents in the Ukrainian city of Severodonetsk turned out on October 10 to thank firefighters who successfully battled forest fires in the Luhansk region of the country, the Civil-Military Administration of Severodonetsk said.

The fires, which covered an estimated 20,000 hectares (49,421 acres), burned homes and claimed the lives of eleven people.

According to local reports, all wildfires in the region had been put out as of October 8.

Footage streamed live on Facebook by the Civil-Military Administration of Severodonetsk shows locals thanking firefighters and presenting them with flowers. Unlike other parts of the Luhansk region, the city of Severodonetsk remains under the control of the Ukrainian government, which has been battling Russian-backed separatists in the region. Credit: Civil-Military Administration of Severodonetsk via Storyful