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It snowed orange in five districts of the Omsk Region Wednesday. The snow area was 1,500 sq. m, 100 km in length. The snow ranged from light yellow to orange shades, ITAR-TASS reported. Moreover, the snow was covered with oil slicks and smelled rotten.
There are 49 inhabited areas in the five districts – Tarsky, Znamensky, Tyukalensky, Kolosovsky Districts. The population in the suffered districts is more than 27,000 people. Local residents have not complained of any health problems yet. Rescuers have warned people of safety measures, recommending avoid using orange snow "for domestic and technical needs". Ministry for Emergencies also urged people to restrict walking their pets and staying outside themselves.
The snow was sent to Omsk chemical laboratory. Experts have flown across the polluted districts and taken a few snow samples for tests. The first results have shown the snow is not radioactive.
Omsk interdistrict prosecutor's office initiated the inquest. "We cannot define the reason of the snowfall due to lack of the test results. The snow is oily to the touch and has a strong rotten smell. We requested information about similar cases in Russia. There are similar facts, the causes ranging from man-caused to natural: seaweed, sand," Omsk environmental prosecutor Anton German said.
The cause of the anomalous precipitation could have been a man-caused accident or industrial exhaust, REGNUM reported with the reference to Ministry for Emergencies. The search of the source of air pollution in the Omsk Region is complicated by lack of information.
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