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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