Putin to visit fire-hit settlements, chair session on GLONASS.

MOSCOW, August 10 (Itar-Tass) - Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin
will make a working trip to the Ryazan region on Tuesday, where he will
hold a session on the use of GLONASS technologies for social and economic
development of Russian regions as well as will visit the settlements of
Kriusha and Polyany, which are among the most badly burned by wildfires
places, the government press service said on Monday.
In Kriusha and Polyany the prime minister will familiarize himself
with the course of construction work.
As of August 8, 269 houses were destroyed as a result of woodland
fires in the region, and 737 people were left homeless. Eight people died.
At the present moment active restoration work is in progress. Web cameras
are installed in seven most badly hit settlements, to monitor construction
work.
A total of 140 million roubles have been allocated from the regional
budget to offer monetary aid to fire victims. The federal budget has sent
499 million roubles in the region. Ten temporary accommodation centres
have been opened in the region. As of August 8, there were 141 people in
them. They are all provided with hot meals and are entitled to medical and
psychological aid.
Meanwhile, the fire situation in the region remains difficult.
Fourteen fires are fixed in the Ryazan region. Seven of them have not been
localized as of yet. All in all 2,360 specialists as well as several
hundred volunteers take part in the operation to put out wildfires.
Specialists from Azerbaijan and Belarus also help in efforts to put out
woodland fires. Two Il-76 planes as well as Mi-17 and Ka-32 helicopters
are used.

.US specialists arrive in Moscow to help put out wildfires.

WASHINGTON, August 10 (Itar-Tass) - A group of specialists from the
U.S. government has arrived in Moscow to consider U.S. aid in fight
against wildfires, U.S. State Department spokesman Philip Crowley said at
a briefing on Monday.
He said the arrival of the team of U.S. experts comes after a
telephone conversation last Friday between U.S. Secretary of State Hillary
Clinton and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, during which an offer
to help fight against the fires was made.
Crowley said it was the U.S. initiative to help Russia. In reply to a
query whether Russia had asked for that, he said - no. The spokesman said
it was Washington's offer to help. If Russia decides that it needs
international assistance, the USA will welcome an opportunity to take
part, he stressed.
The specialists are from the U.S. Agency for International
Development. Crowley said the American team had already met with Russian
colleagues. Besides, he said the U.S. Embassy in Moscow had sent a
telegram to the Department of State asking for permission to let
diplomats' children and other persons whose health is affected by smog
leave the capital for a while.
Crowley said Washington looks into the situation and would shortly
give an answer.

.Ukraine recreation camps invite Russian children from fire-hit reg.
ODESSA, August 10 (Itar-Tass) - Recreation camps in Ukraine's Odessa
region are ready to accommodate 1,000 children from the Russian regions
hit by wildfires, Odessa region's Governor Eduard Matviichuk said on
Monday.
At a session on Monday he instructed his deputy Dmitry Voloshenkov to
accommodate children at camps along the Black Sea coast of the Odessa
region. "We are now actively looking into that, getting ready to
accommodate children who live in Russia in the areas damaged by wildfires.
The regional administration undertakes expenditures connected with their
holidays," the governor stressed.

.Over 4,000 volunteers help in putting out fires in Central Russia.

MOSCOW, August 10 (Itar-Tass) - Over 4,000 volunteers help in putting
out wildfires in Central Russia, the press service of the regional centre
of the Russian Ministry for Emergency Situations said on Monday.
"They work together with firemen amid smog, without getting rest,
doing all that they are asked to without choosing the kind of job to do
and without demanding 'social guarantees'," sources from the press centre
said. They said these are rank-and-file citizens, having absolutely
different professions. However, most of them are members of youth
organizations, movements, or student groups. Besides, there are a lot of
former staffers of the fire protection service among them.
Earlier Minister for Emergency Situations Sergei Shoigu said it would
be efficient to set up a volunteer fire protection service, like in the
USA or in other European states.
The minister believes volunteer firemen must be entitled to benefits,
such as an earlier retirement age, as well as insurance. He said at the
present time the USA has the same number of professional firemen as
Russia, but besides there are one million volunteers.
-0-zhe/


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