Saturday 7 August 2010

Nice day for a white wedding: Brides brave blankets of smog caused by Russian wildfires

The thick blanket of white smog which hangs over Russia was not enough to put off some determined brides from tying the knot today.
The women, barely visible in their white dresses, went ahead with their nuptials, despite the shroud of smog that has descended on the country.
The eerie cloud, which has caused a fourfold increase in airborne pollutants, including carbon monoxide, is the result of forest fires which have killed 50 people nationwide.
Flights at international airports have been grounded and visibility in the capital is down to a few dozen yards as the fires continue to tear through forests and villages.
Russians wore protective face masks as dozens of forest and peat bog fires around the city continued to burn, fanned by south-easterly winds and the country's most intense heat wave in 130 years.
More than 500 separate blazes are active today, mainly across Russia's European territory, according to the Emergencies Ministry.

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