MOSCOW: A major flood in the city of Orsk that forced several thousand people to evacuate after a dam burst on Friday night has created a “critical” situation, Emergency Situations Minister Alexander Kurenkov said on Sunday.
A catastrophic flood has gripped the city of Orsk, situated in the southern Urals near the border with Kazakhstan. Emergency Situations Minister Alexander Kurenkov has declared the situation “critical,” prompting the evacuation of over 4,000 residents from more than 4,500 flooded homes to temporary housing centers.
Torrential rainfall is cited as the primary cause of the dam breach, which occurred in the Orenburg region. Authorities have initiated a criminal investigation into potential negligence and violations of construction safety rules concerning the dam, constructed in 2014, as it was designed to manage a water level of 5.5 meters in the Ural River but was overwhelmed by swelling to nine meters.
The severity of the situation has prompted a federal emergency response, with reinforcements dispatched to the region and additional funds allocated to address the crisis. Melting ice, typical for this time of year, has exacerbated the flooding.
Mayor Sergei Salmin of Orenburg, a city of half a million people, has cautioned residents about the escalating threat, warning that they too may face evacuation. The water level continues to rise, with a 28-centimeter increase reported within a day. Weather authorities anticipate a peak level by Wednesday.
The impact of the flood extends beyond Russian borders, affecting neighboring Kazakhstan. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has described the floods as one of the worst natural disasters in Kazakhstan’s recent history.
Since the onset of spring, several regions in the Urals and western Siberia have been grappling with floods, further exacerbating the already dire situation in Orsk and surrounding areas.
