Thursday, August 5, 2010

The heat in Russia..


Russian Prime Minster Vladimir Putin has held an urgent meeting on Monday with regional governors in Moscow, regarding the devastating wildfires that have hit Russia turning homes and villages into ashes.

Putin is rushing around the country to comfort citizens. He visits fire victims, while publicly dictating to the President what should be done about the fires that have killed 40 people and ravaged almost half a million hectares, reported the Sydney Morning Herald on Wednesday.

"Before winter, all the houses will be standing,'' Putin said, raising his voice to be heard by a crowd he was speaking among. Cameras of all the major television networks broadcasted the meeting across Russia.

"Do you promise us?'' a woman asked. ''Yes, I promise,'' Putin replied, adding that each family member will receive more than $6000 in compensation.

Russian wildfires have taken new tolls as the number of fatalities reaches 40 while officials insist on having the situation under control.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Monday declared a state of emergency in seven regions in European Russia and ordered authorities to protect military depots from the raging fires.

The wildfires accompanied by the worst heat wave in the past 50 years, have engulfed 172,372 hectares (666 square miles) of land, said the Emergency Situations Ministry on its website Tuesday, according to Bloomberg.

"This is the first time in 50 years we've seen the combination of such a long period of abnormal heat and both atmospheric and soil drought," the Hydro-meteorological Center said.

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