14 Reportedly Died In Kazakhstan Forest Fires: Official

Faizan Hashmi Published June 11, 2023 | 01:30 AM

Astana, Kazakhstan, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 11th Jun, 2023 ) :At least a total of 14 people have been died in a major forest fires in northeastern Kazakhstan, the emergency situations ministry said on Saturday, the Central Asian country's highest such toll in the years.

"In a total, 14 bodies have been found so far," the ministry said in a statement, having previously announced it was searching for trapped forest rangers as fires consumed 60,000 hectares (148,000 acres) of land.

The ministry informed that as many as 316 people had been evacuated, however, the situation was under control.

The authorities claimed that the homes are safe and sound, despite the high temperature and the changing direction of the wind, which seemed to be hindering the response.

After the incident, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev sacked emergency situations minister Yury Ilyin earlier on Saturday.

More than 1,000 people, mostly from the defence and emergency situations ministries and others are taking part in the effort to extinguish the fires.

They were started by lightning on Thursday, according to the local authorities in the vast ex-Soviet nation.

Over the deaths, Russian President Vladimir Putin has offered his condolences to Tokayev.