A woman wears a mask in central Moscow to protect herself from smog caused by fires outside the city. Photograph: Mikhail Voskresensky/Reuters

The Russian government has warned residents that the wildfires burning through their country may pose a nuclear threat by releasing radioactive particles contained in trees and plants following the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster.

The government claims that 160,000 people are fighting the numerous fires, but they appear to be losing the battle as additional fires worsen the situation, leaving at least 52 people dead and more than 3,500 homeless as entire villages are consumed in fires.

About 140 flights were delayed on Friday at the Moscow airport when smoke from the fires reduced the visibility at times to as little as 1,100 feet.

The Guardian reports that the Russian government is employing questionable tactics to put the best light on the wildfire situation:

United Russia, the pro-Kremlin party which dominates parliament, has boasted of sending volunteers to help extinguish the fires. But that claim was thrown into doubt yesterday when the party was accused of doctoring a photograph placed on its website.

A sharp-eyed blogger noticed that the picture showing volunteers apparently wrestling with a piece of timber in a smoky wood had been created in 2008 and altered in Photoshop last Saturday. The smoke, he claimed, had been added for effect.

United Russia immediately removed the picture but did not respond to requests for comment.