Fires are raging in Transbaikalia, and firefighters are complaining about low wages and overtime. But it seems their voices are not being heard.

In June, firefighters in Transbaikalia complained to the prosecutor's office about low wages and overtime, but the agency found no violations. Firefighters claim their units are less than half staffed, forcing them to work 24 hours on and 24 hours off.

Meanwhile, a federal state of emergency has been declared in the Trans-Baikal Territory due to large-scale fires; by early June, the fire area was estimated at 1,5 million hectares. 

"Last year, the salary was 58,000 rubles, this year it's 53,000-55,000, even though we work 24 hours on and off due to a driver shortage. Firefighters sometimes earn 40,000-45,000 rubles," a fire department driver told the publication "Regional Aspect."

This year, firefighters have appealed to the prosecutor's office twice: in April, they received incentive payments of 10 rubles, but not everyone is receiving them.

"Last month, drivers didn't receive their payments, but this month, half of them received several thousand," the source added.

The prosecutor's office did not conduct a direct inspection of the units, but only requested data from the regional headquarters of the Ministry of Emergency Situations. Fire station drivers suspect that the prosecutor's office was given a logbook with corrections, omitting overtime. The supervisory agency also stated that the fire stations are staffed at 80-90% capacity, although, according to the driver, his unit has only 12 of the 21 people working there. Turnover is high, and rest days are not provided due to a shortage of personnel.

Firefighters plan to appeal to the Prosecutor General's Office. They also haven't received any additional pay for extinguishing the fires that started in the spring.