RUSSIA: More than 120,000 forest acres burned by wildfires in Far East
Copyright 2001 The Salt Lake Tribune
October 4, 2001
VLADIVOSTOK -- Forest fires have scorched more than 120,000 acres in a tinder-dry region of Russia's Far East, where tens of thousands of people are struggling to cope with thick clouds of smoke and soot.
Wildfires have spread quickly in the Khabarovsk region since they were first reported Monday, and about 35 blazes were burning Wednesday.
One fire was about 60 miles from Khabarovsk, the regional capital and its largest city, with more than 600,000 residents.
Regional emergency workers lack the resources to effectively fight the fires, said Yelena Syshcheva, a spokeswoman for the Natural Resources Ministry in Khabarovsk, 3,800 miles east of Moscow. She said the ministry has one plane and two helicopters.