Russia burning
Muscovites donned masks to protect themselves from smoke and dangerous fumes filling the air around them the fires increased and being outside became nearly impossible.
Today the skies are sunny and the weather cool in Moscow, but Muscovites still look to the forecast every morning and pray for more rain to keep the smoke at bay. The past two weeks have been devastating for Moscow and other parts of Russia as forest fires sparked by an unprecedented heat wave destroyed homes and pushed smoke into a city sweltering in the heat.
The temperatures soared to 102F outside and 110F inside since windows had to remain closed to keep out the smoke. Buck Burch, IMB personnel living in Moscow, said that normal life wound to a halt as going outside became an impossibility.
“Hardly anyone was on the street, the government requested that people be released from work, and some church services were cancelled as many elderly were passing out from the heat and smoke,” he said.
Although typical Muscovites don’t see any spiritual relevance in the fires, believers in Moscow see them as one more call to get right with God.
“Pray that people wake up,” Buck said.
Russia has been plagued with poor infrastructure, a crumbling economy and political instability. The fall of communism brought to light social problems like alcoholism, which has become a national crisis.
They also continue to deal with the environmental fallout of Chernobyl nuclear plant in 1986. The radiation, which spread throughout the region of Bryansk, Russia, is now in danger of going up in flames. Reports from the region are saying that some of the forests in the most highly contaminated areas have begun to burn. Moscow officials have tried to downplay the danger, and as a result, workers unaware of the potential hazard, have been using their bare hands to fight the flames. As plants and trees succumb to the fire, radioactive particles in the contaminated area will be released into the air and could blow all the way to Moscow.
Although 160,000 emergency workers have been working to put out the fires, it is not enough. Not only are the fires coming from peat bogs under the ground, but the equipment used by those battling the flames is pitifully inadequate. Only rain will saturate it and put it to rest.
“In many locations some firefighters’ equipment is scarce and they are using only a spray bottle to battle the flames,” Buck said. “We need precipitation and lots of it.”
Churches have been praying for rain and God is answering those prayers. Last Wednesday there was none forecasted but it rained anyway.
“The rain came because people are praying,” Buck said.
In Moscow alone, 50 people died from fire and more than 1000 from smoke and heat in the past few weeks. Thousands of homes were lost as well. Today, Moscow is livable, but the danger has not passed.
Please continue to pray for more rain and for the Russian people to turn to God in this hour of need.
Posted by Karen Pearce on Aug 19, 2010
Similar: answered prayer, Bryansk, buck burch, fire, heatwave, Moscow
