Firefighting vehicles get down to putting out blaze on former army base in Udmurtia

Firefighting vehicles have gotten down to putting out fire on a former army base in Udmurtia, a region to the West of the Ural Mountains, the press service of the regional center of the Ministry for Emergency Situations and Civil Defense said, TASS reported.

"The vehicles have moved into the field for reconnaissance and putting out the fire from the ground," an official said.

The press service also said a Mi-8 helicopter of the Emergencies Ministry had poured down water nine times on the burning former drill ground but the crew suspended its mission as dusk fell in. In all, as many as 435 men and 101 vehicles, including a firefighting train, three drones and Emergencies Ministry’s water bomber aircraft are engaged in the operation.

Evacuation of people from a garrison town has been over, Yaroslav Semyonov, the chairman of the regional government told TASS. "All the people have been taken to zones of safety away from the garrison town," he said. "The garrison town has 430 apartments, which have room for slightly more than a thousand residents."

"Only the garrison town has been evacuated," Semyonov said. "There’s no need to evacuate people from the village of Pugachevo, as it is located far enough from the base and its position is quite safe."