Voronezh, Russia (CNN) -- Russian emergency services are continuing to battle spreading wildfires over large areas of the west of the country Tuesday as authorities said the death toll had risen to 40.
Russian authorities imposed a state of emergency in about 500 towns and villages on Monday. By Tuesday, fires covered an area of around 1,071 square kilometers (665 square miles), a spokesman for the Russian Emergencies Ministry said according to news agency Itar-Tass.
More than 300 new fires were reported on Tuesday but 247 have been extinguished, the spokesman said. More than 500 fires continue to burn. Regions affected include Nizhny Novgorod, Vladimir and Voronezh and the Republic of Mordovia.
Most of the fires -- among the worst ever to hit the region -- were started accidentally by people burning garbage, dropping cigarettes or failing to extinguish campfires or barbecues properly, Emergency Situations Ministry representative Irina Andrianova said.
CNN
