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Siberian Forest Fires Triple in Size as Hundreds Battle Blaze

Maxim Stulov / Vedomosti

Ongoing forest fires in Siberia have more than tripled in size over the past two days, Russian officials have announced.

Fires in the Irkutsk region have now spread over 32,000 hectares, the regional government said Monday. The total area affected by the blaze has skyrocketed since Friday when fires covered just 10,600 hectares.

Some 233 people are currently working to extinguish the flames, including 131 firefighters and 35 ground vehicles.

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