MOSCOW, May 23. /TASS/. Rescue teams and utilities are unable to start working in Artyomovsk (Bakhmut) at full scale until the city of cleared up and demined, says Yan Gagin, Advisor to Acting DPR Head Denis Pushilin.

"It is still rather dangerous there right now, and even the rescuers are unable to work there at full scale yet. Some time is necessary to clear up the city, to hold it so that sappers could be brought in first, followed by other services," he said on Russian TV Tuesday.

Earlier, Acting DPR Head Denis Pushilin said that preliminary demining has started in Artyomovsk.

Artyomovsk is located in the northern part of DPR. It used to serve as an important logistics node for the Ukrainian battlegroup in Donbass and was one of Ukrainian forces’ most powerful defensive lines. The fighting for the city started on August 1, 2022, and ended on May 20, 2023. This fight has become one of the largest in the special military operation.