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Fire still on near Russian nuclear site
Russia
Russia on Sunday reported success in reducing fires burning close to its main nuclear research centre but in Moscow shifting winds brought the acrid smell of smog back to the capital.
Amid the worst ever heatwave in its history, Russia has for days battled to cut back hundreds of blazes across the country, including flames in a nature reserve near its top nuclear research centre in Sarov, a town in central Russia still closed to foreigners as in Soviet times.
The secret nuclear research centre straddles two regions -- the Nizhny Novgorod and Mordovia regions -- and the emergency ministry said on Sunday the number of fires in both regions had been reduced.
"Despite the continuing hot weather, man is prevailing over the wildfires. There has been a firm trend of cutting the number of wildfires in the region for the first time in the past days this week," the emergency ministry's Volga regional branch said in a statement.