Crews have spent a week battling a wildfire in the mountains near Yalta. It broke out after a Ukrainian drone attack, though occupation officials won’t say what caused it.

A wildfire in the mountains near occupied Yalta has burned for more than a week, growing from three hectares to fifty amid strong winds, prompting a regional state of emergency and a firefighting effort now involving more than 600 people. The BBC Russian Service reported the fire began after a Ukrainian drone attack on the area overnight on August 19, a link local residents also draw, though occupation authorities have not officially stated a cause.

Yalta's Russian-installed administration head, Yanina Pavlenko, dismissed reports of equipment shortages, inaction by emergency services and firefighting fundraising drives as fake news, without offering an alternative account of the fire's origin or the response.

The full dispatch is available from the source below.