Russia’s wildfire death toll rises to 21 in Ural Mountains

MOSCOW (AP) — The death toll from wildfires in Russia’s Ural Mountains has risen to 21, according to Russian state news agency Tass. Wildfires have raged in the Kurgan region of the Urals and in Siberia all week. A resident of western Siberia’s Tyumen province died while attempting to extinguish a fire. According to local authorities, most of the deaths occurred Sunday in the Kurgan province village of Yuldus, which is located on the border between the Ural Mountains and Siberia. A state of emergency was introduced in the province, where more than 5,000 buildings have burned down. Fires also have engulfed land in Sverdlovsk province, and in Siberia’s Omsk and Tyumen provinces.