Berlin, Apr. 12, (dpa/GNA) – The Russian region of Orenburg bordering Kazakhstan is suffering from the worst flooding since records began and authorities expect the flood waters to peak on Friday and Saturday.
A further 800 houses were likely to be flooded, which would affect a further 2,300 people in the southern Russian region, according to state news agency TASS, which cited a deputy governor.
It said around 12,000 homes and 15,000 garden plots in the Orenburg region are flooded due to the high water.
In the regional capital Orenburg, a city of half a million residents, a water level of 11.1 metres was measured on the Ural River on Friday morning – almost 2 metres above the critical mark of 9.3 metres. Experts expected the flood to rise to 11.6 metres.
The previous recorded high was 9.4 metres in 1942, said Orenburg Governor Denis Pasler during a video link with President Vladimir Putin on Thursday evening.
There is also severe flooding in the other Russian regions on the border with Kazakhstan as well as in Kazakhstan itself.
The unusually heavy spring floods are triggered by the melting of large masses of snow combined with heavy rainfall. Ice floes often become wedged on the rivers and create barriers for the flowing water. In addition, dams broke on the Ural River near the city of Orsk.
Residents in the region are complaining about the authorities’ poor crisis management, according to media reports.
Putin listened to the reports of the regional governors during the call and ordered everything to be prepared for reconstruction once the flood waters had receded, according to a transcript of the meeting released by the Kremlin.