IRKUTSK, July 31. /TASS/. A Beriev Be-200 aircraft intended for fighting wildfires will arrive in the Irkutsk Region, where over 700,000 hectares of forests have been scorched by blazes, from Krasnoyarsk on Wednesday, the press service of the Russian Emergencies Ministry’s Main Directorate in the Irkutsk Region informed TASS.

"Be-200 is on its way Krasnoyarsk, it will arrive today. Upon arrival, it will be decided which areas it will be dispatched to," the press service said.

According to the government of the Irkutsk Region, the area affected by wildfires in the region had grown by more than 130,000 hectares since Monday exceeding 700,000 hectares. The firefighting effort involves 279 smokejumpers, 215 forest service specialists and 173 pieces of equipment.