On Wednesday, May 6, a large forest fire broke out in the Rivne region between the villages of Blazhovo and Belsk. The fire spread rapidly, creating a real threat to populated areas.

Forestry fire departments and the State Emergency Service were involved in eliminating the disaster.. This was reported by Rokitnovsky village head Grigory Targonsky.

In a comment to Suspilny, he noted that strong winds prevented the fire from being extinguished..

" This is a so-called crown fire and it is very difficult to extinguish it due to the wind.. The fire has already spread further – to the villages of the Berezovskaya community Glinnoye and Khmel,” said Targonsky.

The Rivne region police noted that community police officers on forest roads ensured the protection of public order and regulated traffic, because due to gusts of wind the direction of the spread of smoke changed sharply.

“Law enforcement officers inform citizens about the danger, urge them to refrain from traveling in a dangerous direction and block off potentially dangerous areas. Police officers warn citizens: do not provoke fires. Remember - burning dry vegetation can cause irreparable harm to the ecosystem. We remind you that such actions are subject to administrative, and in some cases, criminal liability,” the statement said..

Rivneoblenergo reported that a large-scale fire in Rokitnovshchina caused an emergency shutdown of an overhead power line. 970 subscribers were left without power supply: two settlements completely, another partially.

Due to the intensity of the fire, energy workers at the Rokitnovsky site were able to begin restoration work only a few hours after the start of the fire. Specialists worked on powering consumers using backup circuits. We hope that power supply can be restored soon.

“Important: repair of the overhead line will become possible only after the fire is completely extinguished by rescuers,” the message said..