A large forest fire that raged on the territory of the Kamyshen forestry of the Borodulikha branch of the state forest natural reserve 'Semey Ormany' in the Abai region has been localized. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing Kursiv Media.
The fire started on July 16. Forces and means of the Ministry of Emergency Situations, Ministry of Internal Affairs, National Security Committee, Ministry of Defense, forest institutions, local executive bodies and the Ministry of Health were involved in fighting the fire. 623 people, 169 units of ground equipment and seven helicopters fought the fire. The work of firefighters was complicated by extreme heat, high fire danger class and difficult terrain.
On behalf of the Prime Minister, the head of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Kazakhstan Chingis Arinov and Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources Yerlan Nysanbayev arrived at the scene. Earlier, 'Kursiv' reported that open burning in the reserve was completely eliminated, but rescuers are still fighting smoldering hotspots.
Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources Yerlan Nysanbayev said that the total area of the forest fire reached 370 hectares. The official cause of the fire has not yet been established, but the minister named a lightning discharge as a preliminary version.
'Semey Ormany' has already become the site of one of the worst forest tragedies in the history of Kazakhstan. In June 2023, a large-scale fire occurred here, resulting in the deaths of 15 forestry workers.
Three years later, in early June 2026, during a briefing in the government, journalists asked Vice Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources Nurken Sharbiyev what measures were taken after the tragedy to prevent such fires, update fire-fighting equipment and increase the salaries of forestry workers.