Five Ukrainian regions hit by forest fires in early May, some now extinguished, others brought under control – minister

Forest fires swept through Zakarpattia, Rivne, Zhytomyr, Chernihiv and Kyiv regions of Ukraine in early May this year due to weather conditions and enemy shelling, with the area affected by large-scale forest fires exceeding 3,000 hectares on one of the days, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said.

"The beginning of May became a challenge both for Ukrainian forests and for the State Emergency Service. Large-scale forest fires simultaneously engulfed several regions: Zakarpattia, Rivne region, Zhytomyr region, Chernihiv region and Kyiv region… On one of the days alone, the area of large-scale forest fires exceeded 3,000 hectares," he wrote on Telegram on Tuesday.

"As of today, the State Emergency Service has managed to stabilize the situation. The fires in Zakarpattia and Rivne region have been extinguished. In Zhytomyr, Kyiv and Chernihiv regions, the fires have been brought under control," Klymenko said.

According to the minister, this result came after days of continuous work by hundreds of rescuers. While most people only saw smoke rising over the forests, rescuers spent several days at a time inside the epicenters of the fires.

"The temperatures were so extreme that multi-ton vehicles ignited like matches. In this confrontation, we lost two fire trucks. However, thanks to the endurance and professionalism of the rescuers, we managed to prevent the destruction of five special-purpose vehicles," he added.

According to him, operations were particularly difficult in potentially mined areas. In the mountains, rescuers had to battle the flames in locations inaccessible to vehicles. Strong winds turned ground fires into crown fires within minutes.

"Thank you to every rescuer who battled the forest fires during these days. Today the situation has been stabilized precisely thanks to your professionalism and endurance," Klymenko said.