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Death toll from fires in Russia goes down 9% in 2011

About 12,000 people were killed in the fires

MOSCOW, January 12 (Itar-Tass) —— The death toll from the fires in Russia went down about nine percent in 2011, director of the supervision department in the Ministry of Emergency Situations Yuri Deshevykh said at a telecom meeting on Thursday.

“Over 168,000 fires broke out in the previous year. About 12,000 people were killed in the fires that is 8.5% lower than in 2010. We note this downward trend for the first time in the last ten years,” he said.

Meanwhile, 86,000 people were saved.

A substantial decline in the number of fires and the death toll was attained during the New Year holidays. The death toll was 138 people fewer than during the New Year holidays in 2011.

“This is a serious indicator and it is a very good result. We should be grateful to all those who were engaged in this work,” Minister of Emergency Situations Sergei Shoigu said.

He thanked the mass media that “no matter how much it takes were waging an active propaganda.” “This factor allowed us to cut by 34% the number of fires from pyrotechnics,” the minister said.

Shoigu noted that this work should be continued that “will allow cutting the number of fires, the death toll and the number of injured people in the fires in 2012.”