Russia

MOSCOW, May 7. /TASS/: A total of 175 forest fires have been extinguished in Russia on the territory of 50,702 hectares in the last 24 hours, the press service of the Aerial Forest Protection Service said on Tuesday.

"According to regional forestry departments, 175 forest fires were extinguished on the territory of 50,702 hectares over the last 24 hours. As of 12am Moscow time on 7 May 2019, 85 wildfires continue blazing on the territory of 61,393 hectares. Firefighting efforts are underway," the press service said.

MOSCOW, May 6. /TASS/: The Russian Public Opinion Research Center discovered in a poll, which TASS has at its disposal, that almost half of Russians (48%) could barely imagine their life without the Internet.

MOSCOW, May 6. /TASS/: Artillery Marshal Vladimir Mikhalkin firework division is in the final stages of prepping to launch fireworks, which will be fired in Moscow to mark Victory Day on May 9.

The Western Military District’s press service told reporters on Monday that this year the fireworks will go on for 10 minutes and 10,000 bursts will be fired. "72 firework launchers and 18 artillery pieces will fire 30 rounds of fireworks over 10 minutes according to a specially devised automated system," the District said.

MOSCOW, March 6. /TASS/: AO Mercedes-Benz RUS, the Russian dealer of Mercedes-Benz, will recall 1,600 S-class sedans in Russia due to problems with functioning of the driver assistance package, the Federal Agency for Technical Regulation and Metrology (Rosstandart) reports on Monday.

The recall will cover automobiles sold from March 2017 to June 2018, the regulator says.

"The function of detecting absence of hands on the steering wheel may not conform to the specification in certain vehicles with the Ditronic Plus and the driver assistant," the federal agency reports.

6 May 2019; AFP: The pilot of a Russian passenger plane that erupted in a ball of fire on the runway of Moscow's busiest airport, killing 41 people, said lightning led to the emergency landing.

Investigators were on Monday working to understand the causes of the blaze after the Sukhoi Superjet-100 had to return to Sheremetyevo airport shortly after take-off Sunday evening.

MOSCOW, May 5. /TASS/: Russian voyager and survivalist Fyodor Konyukhov, who is now on a solo round-the-world rowboat voyage, has set a world record, being the first to cross the 55th parallel south in the Southern, or Antarctic, Ocean, Konyukhov’s eldest son Oskar, the organizer of the journey, told TASS on Sunday citing his father’s diary.

MOSCOW, May 6. /TASS/: Aeroflot shares dropped 3.3% as trading opened on the Moscow Exchange on Monday to 93.5 rubles per share following the plane crash at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport claiming the lives of 41 people.

On Sunday, the Sukhoi Superjet 100 passenger plane operated by Aeroflot carrying 73 passengers and five crewmembers bound for Murmansk caught fire after emergency landing at Sheremetyevo shortly after the takeoff.

As of 10:07 a.m. Moscow time, the company’s shares were down 1.7% to 95.06 rubles, according to the trading data.

MOSCOW, May 6. /TASS/: Maksim Moiseev, a flight attendant on the Sukhoi Superjet 100 plane that burst into flames at Sheremetyevo airport, died trying to open a door in the tail of the plane that was ravaged by fire to save the passengers, a source in the aviation circles told TASS.

MOSCOW, May 5. /TASS/: Russia’s government has revised the list of substances prohibited for use in sports in line with a similar list approved by the global anti-doping body for 2019. A respective decree has been released on the website of the cabinet of ministers on Sunday.

MOSCOW, May 5. /TASS/: The decree of the Russian government introducing messenger user identification by phone number takes effect starting Sunday, May 5. A respective document was signed by Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev on November 6, 2018.