Death toll rises to 23 in wildfires in southern Russia

Twenty-three people were killed and more than 900 others injured in wildfires that swept through Russia's Republic of Khakassia, Russian Investigative Committee said Monday.

The Interfax news agency quoted a local health official as saying that 77 people, including three children, have been hospitalized, with four victims in extremely grave condition. The condition of 43 others is serious but not life-threatening.

The Ministry of Emergency Situations said earlier in the day that 40 villages have been affected by the wildfires that broke out Sunday, and more than 1,000 homes were destroyed and about 5, 000 people left homeless.

The Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russian President Vladimir Putin has been updated on the situation in Khakassia and is coordinating the work of regional authorities, rescuers and other emergency services engaged in fighting the fires.

Viktor Zimin, head of the republic's government, said the damage caused by the fires was tentatively estimated at 5 billion rubles (about 95 million U.S. dollars), adding that as least several months will be needed for the recovery.

The ministry said that over 1.1 billion rubles will be allocated to compensate the regions affected by the fires.

Results of preliminary investigation showed the fires had been caused by reckless forest burning in the dry and windy weather. According to the Investigative Committee, further investigations into the incident are underway.

As winter is nearly over, people begin to burn grass to cultivate land, which makes it possible for fires to rampage through agricultural land and pastures or even damage buildings and cause casualties, said Emergency Situations Minister Vladimir Puchkov.