Forest fires rage in Siberia

IQALUIT — This week emergency crews on the Chukotsk Peninsula in the Russian Far East battled tundra fires that trapped reindeer flocks and herders and threatened to engulf an oil storage depot.

A total of 74,000 hectares of land were on fire Monday in the far eastern regions of Chukotka, Yakutia and Magadan.

One of eight large fires was four kilometres from the settlement of Omolon. The community has a tank farm that holds 3,000 tonnes of petroleum products, rescue workers told Russia’s Itar-Tass news agency.

Some 50 square kilometres of woodland and tundra were burning in the fire, which was sparked by hot summer weather.

Last weekend a rescue helicopter tried unsuccessfully to reach reindeer herders and their herds after fire burned their camp 100 kilometres from Omolon. The helicopter was stopped by thick smoke, but the herders finally managed to escape.