Wildfires across Mongolia decrease by 68.6 pct in first 3 quarters

ULAN BATOR, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- The number of wildfires decreased by 68.6 percent in the first three quarters of this year in Mongolia, compared with the same period of last year, the country's National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) said on Thursday.

A total of 64 wildfires were recorded in 13 provinces of the country in the January-September period, the NEMA said, adding that the wildfires burned 84,767 hectares of land.

More than 1,000 firefighters and rescuers from the NEMA were mobilized in response to the fires.

The drastic decrease of wildfires was related to heavy rainfall in the country during the summer season, according to the NEMA.