The head of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Russian Federation Kurenkov gave a forecast for fires and spring floods

The forecast of spring floods and fires in Russia is unfavorable. This was announced on March 18 by the head of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Russian Federation, Alexander Kurenkov, during the All-Russian conference call on seasonal risk preparedness.

He noted that the preliminary forecast indicates high risks of natural emergencies.

"Many rivers in the southern regions and the European part of Russia have been freed from ice much earlier than usual, while the basins of individual rivers in the Urals, Siberia and the Far East have accumulated significant reserves of water in the snow cover," said Kurenkov.

According to the head of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of the Russian Federation, combined with an increase in the average daily air temperature and uneven soil moisture, this can lead to unfavorable scenarios.

"The Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations, together with other government agencies, has planned and implemented in advance a set of measures aimed at preventing floods and landscape fires, as well as mitigating their consequences," Kurenkov added.

As specified on the agency's website, command and staff exercises have begun in the regions to work out actions to eliminate possible consequences of emergencies. Operational groups and forces of fire and rescue units have been deployed to areas of conditional emergencies.

Earlier in the day, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Patrushev spoke about measures to prevent wildfires and floods. According to him, at the moment, the focus of increased attention is on the east of the European part of the country and the Southern Urals — by the end of March, the water level there may exceed the regulatory indicators.