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Smoke chokes Moscow

By Vladimir Radyuhin

MOSCOW: Heavy smoke from forest and peat fires has blanketed Moscow and most of western Russia as the country suffered a catastrophic drought this summer. Kremlin towers were invisible (in the picture) from a few hundred metres on Thursday, airports rerouted flights, and cars crawled with headlights on. Pedestrians pressed wet handkerchiefs to their mouths and complained of sore throat and watery eyes, as the carbon monoxide level soared to three times the maximum admissible concentration. Health authorities issued an advisory warning the elderly, children, pregnant women and asthma patients to stay indoors or leave Moscow. The situation in the capital slightly improved on Friday, but meteorologists warn of new waves of smog at the weekend, as some 200 fires continue to rage across an area of almost 500 hectares around Moscow. The European part of Russia has seen the lowest rainfall in a century this year, which made forests dry enough to catch fire from accidental sparks.

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