MOSCOW. June 6 (Interfax) - The Russian Emergency Situations Ministry has issued a wildfire alert for 16 regions.
"Emergency situations are possible within the next 24 hours in 16 regions of the Central, Southern, Volga, Siberian and Far Eastern Federal Districts due to the extreme wildfire hazard," says a report posted on the ministry website.
Some regions have the wildfire hazard of the fifth (top) category.
Meanwhile, 142 wildfires broke out on the area of 5,139 hectares and 127 wildfires of 3,855 hectares were put out over the past day.
There are 185 wildfires at present, and 342 hectares are ablaze, the ministry said.
"Wildfires are the largest in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia), the Khabarovsk territory, the Krasnoyarsk territory and the Irkutsk region," the ministry said, noting that the fires did not endanger residential areas and economic sites.
In all, Russia has had 10,799 wildfires on 599,888 hectares since the beginning of this season.