Wildfires ravage over 300,000 hectares in Mongolia so far this year

ULAN BATOR, July 16 (Xinhua) -- A total of 89 forest and steppe fires have been recorded across Mongolia since the beginning of this year, ravaging 300,433 hectares of land, the country's National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) said Tuesday.

The wildfires have caused total losses of 24.2 billion Mongolian tugriks (around 9.1 million U.S. dollars), according to the NEMA.

Cigarette butts and open fires were the main causes of the wildfires, the NEMA said in a statement.

A total of 77 forest and steppe fires were recorded across the country in 2018, burning 568,600 hectares of land, according to the NEMA.