A rare natural phenomenon – a firespout (tornado) – was first recorded in the Primorsky Territory of Russia, where natural fires are raging, RIA Novosti reports. The area of natural fires in the south of Primorye increased from 3.8 thousand hectares to 4.9 thousand hectares in one day.
Last weekend, large natural fires were recorded in the Khasansky district in the south of Primorye. Authorities reported on Sunday that the area of two fires in one day had increased from 363 to about 3.8 thousand hectares, the fire was burning near populated areas. A special fire regime has been introduced in the district. As of Monday morning, the group of rescuers in the area was increased to 300 people.
Due to the worsening fire situation, Governor of Primorye Oleg Kozhemyako decided from today to introduce a special fire regime in the territories of Artyom, Vladivostok, Bolshoy Kamen, Partizansk, Nakhodka, Ussuriysk, Fokino, Lazovsky, Oktyabrsky, Partizansky, Pogranichny, Khankaysky, Khasansky, Khorolsky , parts of the Chernigovsky, Shkotovsky and Yakovlevsky districts, Mikhailovsky, Spassky districts.
During a fire in one of the regions of Primorye, a rare natural phenomenon was recorded for the first time – a fire tornado. Earlier, a video of an unusual whirlwind, which, according to eyewitnesses, they saw for the first time, was widely circulated on social networks. In the footage, the whirlwind, initially light and then darkening to black, rose tens of meters, approaching eyewitnesses.
One of them was literally running away from the whirlwind. It was reported that the video was filmed in the seaside village of Provalovo (Barabashevskoye rural settlement, Khasan district). It is reported that in the Barabashevsky district, where, according to eyewitnesses, the video was filmed, the wind was not strong. Weather stations recorded a western, southwestern wind of 0.5 meters per second in the area of the village of Barabash with gusts of 2.3 meters per second, at an air temperature of 3.4 degrees below zero, there was no precipitation.
A natural fire is also being extinguished in the Land of the Leopard national park in Primorye, where rare Far Eastern leopards live. The fire, operating in the area of the urban-type settlement of Zarubino, partially affected the territory of the Gamovsky section of the Land of the Leopard national park. Due to strong winds, the fire spread quickly, but thanks to the hard work of Land of the Leopard government inspectors, the fire was contained overnight and Monday morning, and work is underway to finally extinguish the fire.
On Sunday, the regional Ministry of Civil Defense and Emergency Situations reported that firefighters managed to prevent the fire from spreading to residential buildings, where natural fires were raging near two settlements in Primorye. It was clarified that from March 1 to 2, 23 thermal hotspots were registered in the district, the regional operational headquarters decided to triple the forces and means to localize the fire, using, in addition to regional firefighters, the forces of the KSU “Lesookhrana” and “Land of the Leopard”. Primhydromet RIA Novosti reported that no precipitation is expected in the district in the next three days.
Red Book leopards are not yet threatened by natural fires raging in Primorye, they said in the Land of the Leopard national park, clarifying that so far fires have been recorded far from the borders of the national park.
