Private zoo in Irkutsk engulfed by flames and smoke despite minus 35C cold.
With Russia on Covid-19 lockdown, 77 houses were burned down in Novosibirsk and Kemerovo regions.
Victims burned to death while fighting blaze after three massive explosions.
Charred corpses removed from wreckage in Kemerovo with evidence that victims were trapped inside by locked fire doors.
Blazes raging just 50km from the Arctic Ocean in Yakutia.
Ideas are clearly needed for more effective ways of countering the annual wildfire scourge, as the trend remains towards drier and hotter summers.
Forest infernos will be extinguished by the weekend, pledges government, as wildfires become political issue in Moscow.
After a month of warm, dry weather and wildfires, the huge crater nicknamed ‘Mouth of Hell’ is now under direct threat.