YEKATERINBURG, Russia (Reuters) – At least one person was killed and more than 178 buildings were destroyed in fires raging through Russia’s Sverdlovsk region in the Ural mountains, Russia’s emergency ministry said.
Video footage on social media showed flames raging across the horizon, engulfing houses and trees, while smoke blocked out the sky.
“As a result of fires, 178 buildings, including 134 residential buildings, 32 non-residential buildings, have been destroyed by fire,” the ministry said on the Telegram messaging app.
The fire has spread into the villages of Sosva and Tayozhny and were consuming a total of more than 11,000 square meters. In the village of Sosva one person has died.
The cause of the fire remains unclear. Russian emergency services said that more than 380 personnel were involved into containing the fire.
(Writing by Lidia Kelly in Melbourne; editing by Guy Faulconbridge)
