MOSCOW, August 20. /TASS/. An Il-76 plane of the Russian Emergencies Ministry, taking part in a firefighting operation in Serbia, was sent to the epicenter of a fire raging in a national reserve in the Balkan republic, a ministry spokesman told TASS.

"Today, an Il-76 aircraft of the Russian Emergencies Ministry dropped the initial 42 tons of water near the Deliblato Sands reserve. This area lying 180 km away from Nis in the country’s northeast is where the epicenter of wildfires is. Serbia’s most severe blaze has so far been reported in the Deliblato Sands, with more than 3,500 hectares of land swept by fire," the spokesman said.

The firefighting effort is being complicated by hot temperatures and strong gusts of wind. Water shortages have been reported amid the record-low water levels in the Danube River. Two Ka-2 helicopters purchased by Serbia from Russia, too, are taking part in the firefighting mission.

The Il-76 plane is working alongside Serbia’s relevant services to extinguish the fire’s edge and contain it, the Russian Emergencies Ministry added. The Russian-Serbian humanitarian center in Nis, coordinating the firefighting efforts and providing support to first responders, has provided organizational support. Despite a complicated political situation, Bulgaria, too, has allowed the Russian flight to fly in its airspace.

"Despite the West’s anti-Russian sanctions, Russia and Serbia have maintained a friendly relationship. Russia has consistently assisted the fraternal Serbian people in fighting wildfires," the ministry concluded.