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Wildfires Spread In Siberia, Khakasia Toll At 30


Wildfires continued to spread in Siberia as the death toll from blazes in the Khakasia region reached 30.

Russia's Siberian Federal District Forestry Department said on April 17 that wildfires were burning on more than 118 thousand hectares of land.

More than 1,500 houses in the southern Siberian region of Khakasia have burned down since April 12, leaving at least 5,000 people homeless.

Officials in Khakasia said on April 17 that the death toll from fires there had risen to 30 and the two people were reported missing.

In a video shown during Vladimir Putin's televised question and answer session on April 16, a woman from Khakasia burst into tears while begging for help the Russian president to help the region's people who lost their households.

Evacuations, casualties, and damage from wildfires have been reported in other Siberian regions including Altai, Amur, Buryatia, Tyva, Zabaikalye, Krasnoyarsk, and Irkutsk.

Based on reporting by TASS and Interfax

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