Authorities in Siberia’s republic of Tyva declared a regional state of emergency on Sunday due to ongoing wildfires in the region.
“As a result of prolonged hot and dry weather, the situation has deteriorated in the districts of Piykhemsky, Chedi-Kholsky and Tandinsky,” Regional governor Vladislav Khovalyg said, adding that he had requested help from neighboring regions to battle nearly two dozen wildfires currently burning in Tyva.
Khovalyg said those fires engulfed an area of around 7.7 square miles. Earlier, the regional governor declared a wildfire emergency on July 1, which was lifted nine days later.
Federal forest protection authorities said Tyva is one of five regions in Russia with an active state of emergency due to wildfires, adding that lightning and human negligence were the main causes.
Russia’s wildfire season started in the spring, with twice as many fires recorded by mid-April as over the same period in 2023.
Experts have warned that limited resources for fire prevention and control, along with ongoing practices such as dry grass burning, risk turning this year’s wildfire season in Russia into a crisis.
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