Around 150 large forest fires spread across Russia

Almost 9,000 hectares (22,260 acres) of Russia`s forests are ablaze, with 150 large-scale fires continuing to rage across the country, an emergencies situation ministry spokesman said.

"Since last Wednesday, 207 fires have been registered, 58 of which have been put out, but 149 are still blazing across an 8,860-hectare (21,895-acre) area," the press spokesman said.

The worst affected areas are in East Siberia, with the Republics of Buryatia and Tyva operating under a state of emergency.

Seven large forest fires, four affecting an area of 1,900 hectares (4,694 acres), continue to rage in the Republic of Buryatia, while in neighboring Tyva, an 800-hectare (1,971-acre) area of forest is on fire, with 200 hectares (494 acres) of forest in the Irkutsk Region ablaze.

The spokesman said that over the past 24 hours, over 2,300 personnel, more than 400 fire units, and five aircraft had been involved in the firefighting operation.

Since the start of the fire hazard season, more than 14,000 fires have been recorded, covering a million hectare (2.5 million acres) area of Russia.

sections: Accidents