Russian firefighters battle wildfires in Siberia
Firefighters battle wildfires in Siberia
Location: Irkutsk, Russia
158 forest fires have broken out
across 46,262 hectares
Firefighters now are using planes
to disperse chemicals into the clouds
and help bring rain over the region
Courtesy: Aerial Forest Protection Service
(SOUNDBITE) (Russian) RUSSIAN FEDERAL FORESTRY AGENCY DEPUTY HEAD, ALEXANDER AGAFONOV, SAYING:
"We are monitoring the clouds and when we find enough clouds over a wildfire, the plane immediately takes off. Today, we are going to work over two or three wildfires. This method makes fire isolation and fire extinguishing in remote areas much easier for firefighters working on the ground. Their job becomes significantly easier."
The region has declared a state of emergency
and 4.62 million hectares of forest had burned
Source: Greenpeace
across Russia since the start of the year