MOSCOW – Forest fires raging south of Moscow have intensified, Russian authorities said on Monday, as residents of the capital complained of a sharp smell of smoke pervading the air. Since early August fires have been raging across the Ryazan region, some 200 km (125 miles) southeast of Moscow, where officials have been scrambling personnel to put them out. The region’s acting governor Pavel Malkov said a state of emergency had been put in place and that residents in two settlements – Olgino and Golovanovo – had been ordered to evacuate. “The area covered by the fire continues to grow slowly. According to the Aerial Forest Protection Service, we are looking at about 8,000-9,000 hectares today,” he said, describing the situation as “tense”. Sergei Sobyanin, the mayor of Moscow, said the city had sent equipment and personnel to the Ryazan region but that their efforts had not been enough to contain the blazes.