Firefighters battle 20 wildfires in Russian Far East

Firefighters have extinguished 14 wildfires in the Russian Far East in the past twenty-four hours, but are still battling 20 forest fires in the area, the regional forestry department said on Sunday. "Satellite monitoring and aircraft surveillance registered a total of 34 forest fires on Saturday on an area of about 6,300 hectares. Fourteen fires have been extinguished over the past twenty-four hours on an area of over 5,700 hectares," the department said. Over 600 people and 100 pieces of equipment, including 19 aircraft, are involved in the firefighting effort, the department said. Russia is trying to prevent the developments of last summer, when an enormous heat wave in the country's European part caused massive wildfires, which killed 62 people and left thousands homeless. Wildfires in forested regions of Russia are common during the dry and hot summer season. Most of the time, the fires start because of the careless behavior of local residents in the woods.