In Siberia, volunteers wage war on Russia’s wildfires with shovels and saws

The little domed tents of the volunteer firefighters in the clearing of a Siberian forest can be hard to see — even from only a few steps away — because of the choking smoke. Their shovels and saws seem to be tiny tools against the vast blaze, like toy weapons brought to a war. But their love of the vast and wild region is a powerful motivator in a summer of sprawling fires that might become Russia's worst ever. As of Monday, about 1.88 million hectares (4.6 million acres) of forest were burning in Russia — an area larger than the U.S. state of Connecticut. More than 5,000 regular firefighters are involved, but the scale is so large and the area is so enormous that 55% of the fires aren’t being fought at all, according to Avialesookhrana, the agency that oversees the effort. Russia deploys military to help contain raging Siberian wildfires ‘We can't see each other’: Fires rage across Siberia amid dryest summer in 150 years That means the volunteers, who take time off work and rely on their own money or nongovernmental funds, are a small but important addition to the overwhelmed forces. "The guys (volunteers) are doing… Read full this story

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