20 July 2026 on the territory of the state forest fund of Kazakhstan, 55 forest fires were recorded. Most of the fires have already been extinguished, with the remaining hotspots localised or under control, which prevented the spread of fire and major forest fires.
WHERE THE FIRES WERE RECORDED
According to the Ministry of Ecology, fires were recorded in the following areas:
- GLPR "Semey Ormany" — 41;
- GLPR "Ertis Ormany" — 9;
- East Kazakhstan Region (EKR) — 3;
- Naurzum State Nature Reserve — 1;
- Bayanaul State National Natural Park — 1.
The main cause of the fires was lightning strikes.
WHAT IS THE STATUS OF FIREFIGHTING
The forest protection service began extinguishing the fires immediately upon detection. According to updated operational data, 45 fires have been extinguished, and 8 have been localised. The spread of another two hotspots has been halted, and the situation is under control.
The department noted that the spread of fire and the occurrence of major forest fires were avoided.
WHO PARTICIPATED IN THE EXTINGUISHING
Firefighting efforts involved forest protection personnel, aviation, units of the Ministry of Emergency Situations (MES), local executive bodies, and other services.
According to the department, thanks to early detection of fires and the rapid response of the deployed forces, most fires were extinguished on minimal areas.
CONTEXT
On 16 July, a forest fire broke out on the territory of "Semey Ormany" in the Borodulikha district of the Abay region. Forces from the Ministry of Emergency Situations (MES), forestry, police, and aviation from several agencies were involved in extinguishing it, and 190 children and 20 staff were evacuated from the nearby children's camp "DosbolLike".
On 18 July, the fire was localised. Work is currently ongoing to fully extinguish individual smouldering hotspots and soak the area.
Earlier, the FBRK editorial team identified a discrepancy in the assessment of the fire's area. It turned out to be significantly larger than the preliminary estimate. According to data from the NASA FIRMS fire monitoring system, around 1,676 hectares were affected by the fire, whereas earlier reports had mentioned 370 hectares.
Earlier, "Semey Ormany" reported two new forest fires. According to preliminary data, they also resulted from lightning strikes.
