Russia Is Burning

[filkertom]

Tragic beyond belief:

Deaths in Moscow have doubled to an average of 700 people a day as the Russian capital is engulfed by poisonous smog from wildfires and a sweltering heat wave, a top health official said Monday.

Moscow health chief Andrei Seltsovky blamed weeks of unprecedented heat and suffocating smog for the rise in mortality compared to the same time last year, Russian news agencies reported. He said city morgues were nearly overflowing, filled with 1,300 bodies, close to their capacity.

Acrid smog blanketed Moscow for a six straight day Monday, with concentrations of carbon monoxide and other poisonous substances two to three times higher than what is considered safe. Those airborne pollutants reached a record over the weekend — exceeding the safe limit by nearly seven times.

About 550 separate blazes were burning nationwide Monday, mainly across western Russia, including about 40 around Moscow, according to the Emergencies Ministry. Forest and peat bog fires have been triggered by the most intense heat wave in 130 years of record keeping.

Alexander Frolov, head of Russia's weather service, said judging by historic documents, this heat wave could be the worst in up to 1,000 years.

As is usual on Yahoo, the comments are a mix of rational voices and nuckin futbars, but there is one I thought was particularly telling:

For all the people talking crap, you may not have noticed but there is only one atmosphere on this planet. Not only is deforestation a problem for the entire planet, do you this this smoke is going to stay in one place?

Comments

[annearchy.livejournal.com]

As the American Lung Association says, "If you can't breathe, nothing else matters."

I work in air pollution control. I was unaware of this story until this morning (apparently missed it online and haven't seen TV news all weekend). This truly sounds like a tragedy. No, smoke doesn't stay in one place. Apparently there are also wildfires in Ontario, Canada, so the US Northeast will probably be affected by those. Air moves all around the globe; studies have shown that pollution from China sometimes affects the United States.

Okay, off my professional soap box now.

[kilbia.livejournal.com]

Kudos to the quoted commenter for pointing out the obvious, and shame on those who didn't think of it themselves.

I lived in Oregon when the Chernobyl accident happened, and there was an article in the paper about how radiation began showing up in the milk from the local cows.

[alverant.livejournal.com]

That's tragic news. I hope it's over soon. How much can be done about it? The heat is one thing, but the smog ... how do you take care of that?

[tcgtrf.livejournal.com]

I'm surprised that you guys haven't heard about the drought in Russia. It's going to have a long-lasting effect on the world economy.

The wildfires are not their biggest problem. Their wheat crop died. Not quite all of it, but enough that Vlad Putin has forbidden sales to other countries. Winter wheat is used for miscellaneous foodstuffs, but spring wheat, the kind that failed, is the source for bread and pasta.

With the Russian grain excluded from the market, we're going to experience an inflation in all meat and cereal foodstuffs at the same time that we have a deflation in wages, bank interest on savings, and money received for sales.

That combination may be enough of a push to send the economy down over the shoulder of the "head-and-shoulders" graph.

Tom Trumpinski

[lariss.livejournal.com]

"No, we don't share the same atmosphere! There's just no way! Our free American atmosphere is WAAAAAY more equal than their Russian fascist-commie atmosphere"
/end_ignorance