Grass fire in Merke district mountains increases in size

TARAZ. KAZINFORM The grass fire broke out in the mountains of the Merke forestry of Zhambyl region some 20 km away from Aktogan village on August 3. It burnt some 200 hectares. 161 people, 24 units of equipment, 2 planes, and a helicopter were deployed to fight the fire, Kazinform reports.

The fire had engulfed some 300 hectares as of 10:00 p.m. 25 more people joined the fire suppression efforts.

The territory of the state forestry in Zhambyl region reaches 4 million 427 thousand hectares, including 2 million 357 thousand covered with woodland. The forest resources occupy 30.8% of the whole territory of the region.