Russia evacuates 4,000 as dam ruptures, flooding near Kazakh border

According to the Orenburg governor’s office on Saturday, the flooding, triggered by heavy rainfall, led to the displacement of "4,208 people, including 1,019 children," with over 2,500 residences affected.

Governor Denis Pasler noted that the floodwaters had reached their peak, with Orsk, a city of 230,000 people on the border, facing particularly challenging circumstances.

Reports indicate that approximately 2,000 individuals were evacuated from their homes in Orsk alone, situated in the Orenburg region of the Ural mountains.

Authorities have cautioned about hazardous water levels along the Ural river in the main city of Orenburg.

Video footage released by the emergency services ministry depicts residents being rescued in lifeboats while wearing life jackets. Thousands of homes have been submerged, as reported by Russian news agencies.

Furthermore, Russia has launched a criminal investigation into "negligence and violation of construction safety rules" regarding the breached dam, constructed in 2014. The local prosecutor's office attributed the breach to inadequate maintenance.

Floods at the onset of spring have affected several regions in the Urals and western Siberia, as well as parts of Kazakhstan.

Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev characterized the flooding as potentially the country's most significant natural disaster in terms of scale and impact in 80 years.