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Situation with forest fires reversed in Bratsk

The governor thanked all who participate in localising and putting out fires and noted that “the most pessimistic forecast failed to be materialised”

IRKUTSK, October 2 (Itar-Tass) — The situation with forest fires has been reversed in Bratsk over the past 24 hours, said Governor (and regional cabinet head) of the Irkutsk Region Dmitry Mezentsev, speaking at a visiting meeting of the regional commission on emergencies and fire safety, Itar-Tass learnt on Sunday at the press service of the municipal administration.

The governor thanked all who participate in localising and putting out fires and noted that “the most pessimistic forecast failed to be materialised”. Apart from regional firefighters and rescuers, labour force from Krasnoyarsk, Novosibirsk and Tomsk work now in Bratsk. Krasnoyarsk sent 119 rescuers to the city, Novosibirsk – 147 workers, including 95 rescuers, and Tomsk – 99.

“Precisely this cooperation work helped to do much,” he noted. Mezentsev also praised the work of local volunteer firefighters.

Turning to city authorities, he said: “You are duty-bound to ensure a quite different level of leadership in Bratsk where there are so many responsive people, to examine the situation and to draw conclusions. The city has everything that quality of life should be higher and that it should look well in the mass media.”

On the governor’s instruction, executives and specialists of structural subdivisions of the regional government and the local branch of the Ministry for Emergencies will remain in Bratsk till October 4, since two seats of fire with a total area of 130 ha are still raging in the city, although both are localised.

On Saturday, five seats of fire over an area of 318.3 hectares were localised. Fires were battled by 1,600 people and 65 units of machinery, including two helicopters.