Wildfires Continue to Cause Substantial Damage in Provinces

By M.ZOLJARGAL

A wildfire broke out in Khentii Province's Bayan-ovoo soum on Monday and has been spreading to other provinces despite efforts to put it out.

The wildfire expanded to two bags (the smallest administrative unit in provinces) of Sukhbaatar Province's Tumentsogt soum, which borders Bayan-ovoo, and also spread to Dornod Province.

Firefighters managed to keep the fire from reaching the central area of Tumentsogt soum.

"Wind speed accelerated to 18 to 28 meters per second at night on Tuesday and the direction of the wildfire moved to the center of Tumentsogt soum, which could've resulted in much greater damage, as the area is densely populated. Rescue teams put out fire moving to the center, but it proved the necessity of educating residents on survival skills," highlighted the Chief of the Fire Department of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), S.Zaluukhuu.

Although the fire was kept from reaching Tumentsogt soum's center, the wildfire continues in Khentii and Dornod Provinces.

The gers of 18 families in Khentii and Sukhbaatar Provinces and around 30 livestock were burnt in the wildfire as of Wednesday, according to a NEMA report. Deputy Minister U.Khurelsukh has announced that the gers of the 18 families will be replaced following the filing of an official report on the wildfire.

Unofficial sources have stated that the damage caused by the wildfire is much higher than what is officially being reported. The exact number of livestock that have died in the wildfire is currently being calculated and eight cars were said to have been damaged by fire.

Six rescue teams from Sukhbaatar and three teams from NEMA are currently working in Khentii Province to stop the fire. Dornod, Sukhbaatar, Govisumber, Dornogovi Provinces, and Sukhbaatar Province registered residents living in Ulaanbaatar have volunteered to...