Fires rage on as Moscow suffers ‘hottest day ever’
The Russian capital Moscow has suffered its hottest day on record, with temperatures reaching 39C (102F).
A month-long record-breaking heatwave has sparked nearly 50 fires in the Moscow region and the capital is sweltering under a thick layer of smog.
Health experts say pollution levels in parts of the city are 10 times higher than normal safety limits and advise locals to stay indoors or wear masks.
A state of emergency has been declared in more than 20 drought-hit regions.
It is estimated a fifth of the country’s wheat crop has now died due to the lack of rain in what is thought to be the country’s worst drought for more than a century.
Scores have died in the heatwave, some drowning having taken a swim after drinking too much vodka.
Fully-clothed bathers
Emergency aircraft have already dropped several hundred tonnes of water to extinguish the blazes.
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