States of emergency spread through Russia as fires burn on

Jul 31, 2010, 13:37 GMT

Moscow - Officials in 14 of Russia's regions have declared a state of emergency due to devastating forest and peat fires, the broadcaster Echo of Moscow reported Saturday.

Thousands of emergency services workers continued to fight more than 60 blazes across Russia. Hundreds of smaller 'islands of fire' are also plaguing the country, the Civil Defence Ministry said on its website.

Some 20 forest and peat fires were raging in the areas surrounding the capital Moscow, where more than 10 million people live.

The death toll from the fires has reached 28, with hundreds of people injured.

July has been the hottest month on record, with temperatures averaging 35 degrees Celsius for weeks in many regions. Russian firefighters have blamed a lack of rain for the spread of the forest fires. Meteorologists don't expect any relief in coming days.

Rescuers have brought dozens of children to safety in the worst- hit areas in central Russia. The destruction is reported to be especially bad in the region of Nizhny Novgorod, some 400 kilometers east of Moscow.

Thousands of people have lost all of their belongings, as entire villages have gone up in flames. Many of the houses in the Russian provinces are made out of wood, making them particularly vulnerable.

Tens of thousands of hectares of forest have also been destroyed.

The Civil Defence Ministry has deployed helicopters, planes, bulldozers and trains with large water tanks. President Dmitry Medvedev on Friday also ordered more than 2,000 soldiers with heavy equipment to join the fight against the fires.

'The situation is very grave,' he said.

Russian leaders have criticized regional officials for not doing enough as the disaster became apparent. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin warned of harsh consequences for the neglect shown by authorities during a visit to Nizhny Novgorod on Friday.

Provincial administrators, meanwhile, blamed careless by citizens for the spread of new fires.

Meanwhile, Germany's foreign ministry offered Saturday to provide Russia with disaster aid, including medical supplies, emergency shelters and water purification equipment.