A cigarette butt caused the grass to catch fire and the house to burn down

On April 1st, at 16:10, a resident of the village of Bukhovo reported to the RChS that dry vegetation was burning in the village.

Ten minutes later, the first rescue unit was already on site. The fire had spread over an area of almost a kilometer and was approaching residential buildings from the side of the burning field.

At 16:26, on the opposite side of the field, rescuers discovered that the flames had reached an uninhabited house. Reinforcements were needed for firefighting.

By the time rescuers reached the emergency site, the fire had damaged the roof, ceiling, and walls of the structure. No one had lived in the house since 2020. The owner is being identified.

The considered version of the cause of the fire is careless handling of fire while smoking. It was found that residents of a neighboring village, driving by, threw an unextinguished cigarette butt onto the roadside, which caused the grass to catch fire.

As of 03.04.2025, 3166 cases of burning grass and shrubs have been recorded in the republic over an area of 650.3 hectares (for the same period in 2024, there were 973 cases over an area of 117.9 hectares), and 216 forest fires have occurred over an area of 304.2 hectares (for the same period in 2024, there were 25 forest fires over an area of 17.4 hectares).

According to Article 16.40 of the Code of Administrative Offenses, for illegal burning of dry vegetation, standing crops, as well as stubble and post-harvest residues in fields, or failure to take measures to extinguish fires, guilty persons shall be brought to administrative responsibility in the form of a fine from 10 to 30 basic units. In accordance with Article 16.41, for setting fires in prohibited places, a fine of up to 12 basic units may be imposed. In case of causing damage on a particularly large scale, criminal liability arises.