2010-08-05 09:12

MOSCOW - Russian President Dmitry Medvedev reprimanded the head of the navy on Wednesday and sacked several senior naval officers for a major fire at a base outside Moscow.

The burnt root of a tree is seen outside the town of Elektrogorsk, some 60 km (37 miles) east of the capital Moscow, August 3, 2010. Efforts to fight Russia's devastating forest fires have been crippled by a law passed four years ago at the behest of Vladimir Putin and powerful logging interests, environmentalists and politicians said on Tuesday. [Agencies]

Medvedev announced the dismissals after halting a summer stay by the Black Sea and returning to the Kremlin for emergency talks as the death toll from persistent wildfires hit 48.

A forest fire destroyed at least 13 hangars containing aviation equipment at a navy base outside Moscow last Thursday but news of the fire was released only on Tuesday. The military had initially denied reports of the destruction.

"Despite the fact that we asked the Defence Ministry to help out with the extinguishing fires to help the civilian population, in the majority of cases the ministry cannot (even) protect itself," Medvedev told senior officials in the Kremlin.

Medvedev said Russian navy commander Admiral Vladimir Vysotsky had not done his job properly and ordered the sacking of several senior officers including the navy's head of aviation, the head of logistics and the head of the base itself.

Medvedev said commanders of the Kolomna base, 100 km (60 miles) southeast of Moscow, were absent when the fire occurred.

"It is unclear where they were," Medvedev said.

The Moscow-based Centre for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies (CAST) told Reuters the equipment destroyed by the fire at the base included four "extremely expensive" AL-31 engines for Sukhoi-33 aircraft carrier-based jet fighters.

Other military property destroyed included aircraft cannons, trucks, navigation equipment, uniforms and footwear.

Russia's navy has sought to revive its Soviet-era reach in recent years but has been plagued by disasters including a tragedy in 2000 when the nuclear-powered submarine Kursk sank after torpedo explosions on board, killing all 118 crewmen.

Medvedev said many other military sites across Russia were under threat from the fires and warned he could sack more military brass if they are not protected from the flames.

Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov "must take it all under his direct control, meet with the leadership of the ministry today and tell them that if something like this (base) catches fire, they will all be held responsible," he said.