In Russia, nearly 4,500 people were evacuated from a flooded area near the border with Kazakhstan. On Friday a dam in the Orenburg region, in the Urals, burst. The city of Orsk, which has more than 200,000 inhabitants, was flooded, as was part of Kazakhstan.
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Nearly 4,500 people evacuated in the city of Orsk alone, more than 6,000 houses flooded and entire neighborhoods under water. In total, ” 4,402 people were evacuated », including more than 1,100 children, the press service of the regional governor, Denis Pasler, announced on Telegram.
The cause of these floods: the partial collapse of a dam on the great Ural River. According to local authorities, this dam is designed for a water level which should not exceed 5.50 meters. But due to melting snow, the level of the Urals has almost doubled. A level that will continue to rise », Warned the mayor of the city of Orenburg, Sergei Salmine. In the coming hours, “ the level could reach a critical threshold “, he added, calling “ everyone to immediately leave homes located in the flood zone “.
President Vladimir Putin asked the Minister of Emergency Situations, Alexander Kurenkov, to go there, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitri Peskov said in the evening.
More than 500 specialists are already in Orsk, and reinforcements are expected to arrive soon, according to the Ministry of Emergency Situations.
Kazakhstan also affected by these floods
According to the regional prosecutor’s office, the Orsk town hall received “ a warning » last month regarding a “ violation of legislation on the protection of the population and territories from natural and man-made emergencies “. Authorities have opened an investigation to determine whether there was negligence in the construction of the dam.
Floods also affect the Kazakhstan neighbor. According to its president Kassym-Jomart Tokaïev who spoke in a televised speech, it is probably “ of the biggest » natural disaster of the last 80 years. A local emergency situation regime was declared “ in ten regions of the country », Specified the head of state.