Smog in Moscow May Be Killing 200 Per Day, Russian Scientist

A Russian biologist suspects poisonous smog is killing a few hundred people a day in Moscow if compared to 2002.
Smog in Moscow May Be Killing 200 Per Day, Russian Scientist
A Russian woman wears a face mask to protect herself from acrid smoke while walking in central Moscow on August 9. The daily mortality rate in Moscow has nearly doubled amid a forest fire smog filled record heatwave, with hundreds of extra deaths each day (Natalia Kolenisova/Getty Images)
8/9/2010
Updated:
10/1/2015
<a><img src="https://www.theepochtimes.com/assets/uploads/2015/09/103299570.jpg" alt="A Russian woman wears a face mask to protect herself from acrid smoke while walking in central Moscow on August 9. The daily mortality rate in Moscow has nearly doubled amid a forest fire smog filled record heatwave, with hundreds of extra deaths each day (Natalia Kolenisova/Getty Images)" title="A Russian woman wears a face mask to protect herself from acrid smoke while walking in central Moscow on August 9. The daily mortality rate in Moscow has nearly doubled amid a forest fire smog filled record heatwave, with hundreds of extra deaths each day (Natalia Kolenisova/Getty Images)" width="320" class="size-medium wp-image-1816362"/></a>
A Russian woman wears a face mask to protect herself from acrid smoke while walking in central Moscow on August 9. The daily mortality rate in Moscow has nearly doubled amid a forest fire smog filled record heatwave, with hundreds of extra deaths each day (Natalia Kolenisova/Getty Images)
A Russian biologist suspects poisonous smog is killing a few hundred people a day in Moscow if compared to a similar situation in 2002, reported Russian Novay Gazeta newspaper on Monday.

Aleksey Yablokov, a member of the Russian Academy of Science, said that during fires in 2002, a week of peat bog smog caused 600 deaths in Moscow. People at greatest risk include children, the elderly and heart patients, he said.

“If we take into consideration the high temperatures this year, we can make a guess that peat bog smog in the city kills about 200 people per day,” said Yablokov.

However, Andrey Seltsovky, head of the Moscow health department said at a press conference that the daily number of deaths in Moscow has doubled to an average of 700 people with city morgues being close to capacity.

The Russian health ministry has not confirmed these figures.

On Monday, smog appeared for the first time in the western city of St. Petersburg and nearby areas and is believed to be blowing in from the Moscow region.

Smoke coming from fires near the capital has shrouded Moscow over the past week forcing people to struggle with daily life. Muscovites have taken to wearing respirators and gas masks while walking outside or at home with wet cloths to seal the windows from the smog.

Russian authorities officially estimate that wildfires across the country have caused at least 52 deaths, destroyed thousands of homes, and left thousands more people displaced.