ULAN BATOR, Aug. 15 (Xinhua) -- More than 65 people, including firefighters, soldiers and local residents, were battling to extinguish forest and steppe fires in western Mongolia, the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) said on Friday.
The fires broke out on Wednesday in Tsagaanchuluut soum of Zavkhan province due to the negligence of citizens, the NEMA said in a statement.
The NEMA warned residents of Ulan Bator and other provinces not to make bonfires or throw cigarette butts on the ground in dry and hot weather conditions.
The total number of forest and steppe fires across Mongolia as of mid-August reached 209, according to the agency. ■
