Fierce fires erupted in eastern Ukraine on Sept. 30, engulfing over 9,300 hectares in Luhansk Oblast, according to the State Emergency Service. As a result, nine people were killed, 14 were hospitalized and over 120 were evacuated as of 11 a.m. on Oct. 1.
Over 146 fires have broken out in the region, of which nearly 116 were liquidated or localized, and over 30 continue to spread due to the dry weather and high winds.
The fires so far have threatened 22 local villages and have destroyed more than 250 buildings, according to the State Emergency Service. As a result, schools in the city of Severodonetsk, Luhansk Oblast, suspended their work. The situation is especially dangerous at the military front line where explosive objects may be located as Ukraine fights off Kremlin-backed forces.
The State Emergency Service did not publish an explanation of what might have caused the fires but the police have launched an investigation. The local authorities are looking into a version that the fires broke out because of the shelling induced by Russian-backed forces in the region.
According to the citizens of the village of Stanytsia Luhanska, the fires erupted after Russia’s militants in Donbas opened fire upon a forested area. Local authorities said that the flames break out all the time after the wind picks up and shelling occurs from the Russian-occupied side.
Ukraine’s army that is fighting off Russian-backed forces in the Luhansk and Donetsk oblasts supported this version.
According to Ukraine’s military, the fires were caused by tracers – bullets and shells that ignite when fired.
To tame the fires in the east, the State Emergency Service, along with the Ministry of Internal Affairs, called up over 1,200 personnel and dozens of vehicles. The governor of Luhansk Oblast Serhiy Haidai said that the aircraft was deployed when the occupants agreed to stop the shelling.
As of 2 p.m. on Oct. 1, the fire reached the checkpoint between Stanytsia Luhanska and Russian-occupied territories. Ukraine’s border guard service has warned about the possible detonation of munitions caused by the flame and closed the crossing point.
Devastating fires broke out in Ukraine’s eastern Luhansk Oblast on Sept. 30, taking up over 9,300 hectares of the territory. The local authorities are looking into a version that the fires broke out because of the shelling induced by Russian-backed forces in the region. (dsns.gov.ua)
