Floodwaters Still Invading Homes In North Kazakhstan, Southern Russia As Predicted Peak Nears
An aerial view shows a settlement surrounded by rising floodwaters in the North Kazakhstan region, Kazakhstan, on April 16.
Floodwaters continue to threaten homes and residential areas in southern Russia and northern Kazakhstan on April 21 as water levels reach record highs in southern Russia and northern Kazakhstan, where sudden high temperatures have sparked massive snowmelt and the worst flooding in decades.
Authorities in Russia's Kurgan region ordered urgent evacuations in more than 20 settlements on April 20 as the waters were "rising quickly," the Kurgan regional government's press service said.
In northeastern Kazakhstan, a resident of the village of Vishenka told RFE/RL's Kazakh Service on April 21 that water from the bloated Chagan River, a tributary of the Ural River, was flooding cottages there.
Kazakh regional authorities have prohibited journalists from visiting flooded areas or broadcasting images or information from the scene. They cited emergency operations to ban the use of drones.
No End In Sight As Flooding Continues Unabated In Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Russia
1/12In some of the worst flooding in recent memory, more than 114,000 people have been evacuated from their homes in Kazakhstan as floodwaters continue to rise across the region.
Unusually warm weather after heavy winter snowfalls caused the sudden melting of snow, which in turn led to the rapid swelling of rivers.
As the worst flooding in living memory persists, floodwaters continue to wreak havoc across Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Russia, prompting the mass evacuation of more than 125,000 people.
2/12Kazakh President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev, who traveled to the partially submerged city of Petropavl (pictured), told frustrated residents who are unable to get to their homes: "We are going through tough times. This is a disaster of a national scale."
As the worst flooding in living memory persists, floodwaters continue to wreak havoc across Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Russia, prompting the mass evacuation of more than 125,000 people.
3/12In the settlement of Karatal, in the Aqtobe Province of northern Kazakhstan, families are now sharing tents as their homes were rendered uninhabitable by the rising waters and their aftermath.
As the worst flooding in living memory persists, floodwaters continue to wreak havoc across Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Russia, prompting the mass evacuation of more than 125,000 people.
4/12Another villager from Karatal, Madeniet Eleuov, is using wooden planks to support a partially collapsed wall in his flood-damaged home.
Villagers are not only trying to salvage their homes but locate the livestock that they depend on for their livelihoods -- many of which have succumbed to the flooding and now lie scattered in the streets.
As the worst flooding in living memory persists, floodwaters continue to wreak havoc across Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Russia, prompting the mass evacuation of more than 125,000 people.
5/12A Kazakh government handout photo shows evacuees being rescued by a military helicopter on April 15.
Toqaev assured evacuees that the government would not leave them without assistance. "The state will take care of every citizen, every family. This is my priority," he vowed.
As the worst flooding in living memory persists, floodwaters continue to wreak havoc across Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Russia, prompting the mass evacuation of more than 125,000 people.
6/12In Tajikistan, floodwaters are also wreaking havoc. In the Rudaki district, south of Dushanbe, residents were left to clean up after flooding hit their homes in the early hours of April 15.
As the worst flooding in living memory persists, floodwaters continue to wreak havoc across Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Russia, prompting the mass evacuation of more than 125,000 people.
7/12Khotamsho Latifzoda, a Tajik emergency-services official, told RFE/RL's Tajik Service that damage to flooded residential buildings was "insignificant."
As the worst flooding in living memory persists, floodwaters continue to wreak havoc across Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Russia, prompting the mass evacuation of more than 125,000 people.
8/12RFE/RL journalists on the scene said that residents were relying on each other for the cleanup, as government resources were not enough.
As the worst flooding in living memory persists, floodwaters continue to wreak havoc across Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Russia, prompting the mass evacuation of more than 125,000 people.
9/12Lyudmila Borodina, 56, a medical worker, cries in a flooded residential area of the Russian city of Orenburg on April 13.
Flooding in Orenburg became "critical" on April 12, resulting in "mass evacuations" as the Ural River continued to rise.
As the worst flooding in living memory persists, floodwaters continue to wreak havoc across Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Russia, prompting the mass evacuation of more than 125,000 people.
10/12Flooding covers a residential area in Orsk, a city with a population of 240,000 in the Orenburg region, where five people have died, including a 65-year-old man who refused to leave his home.
A state of emergency was declared in the Orenburg region on April 4 after torrential rain led to rising water levels, causing a breachin the dam in Orsk and resulting in catastrophic flooding.
As the worst flooding in living memory persists, floodwaters continue to wreak havoc across Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Russia, prompting the mass evacuation of more than 125,000 people.
11/12A drone view shows a flooded area around the Dubki residential complex in Orenburg, a city of half a million people.
Russian officials in the Tyumen region of western Siberia and Kurgan in the south near the border with Kazakhstan on April 16 ordered moreevacuations as the Ishim and Tobol rivers continued to swell.
As the worst flooding in living memory persists, floodwaters continue to wreak havoc across Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Russia, prompting the mass evacuation of more than 125,000 people.
12/12Emergency workers clear logjams on the Malo-Chausovsky Bridge across the Tobol River on April 15 in Kurgan.
The region's governor, Vadim Shumkov, warned of a "colossal" amount of water heading toward the city of Kurgan, which has already experienced power cuts and evacuations. Shmukov said the Tobol River could see water levels rise to 11 meters, double the level where it breaks its banks in some places along its course.
As the worst flooding in living memory persists, floodwaters continue to wreak havoc across Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Russia, prompting the mass evacuation of more than 125,000 people.
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The level of the Ishim River near the city of Ishim in Russia's Tyumen region rose by more than 2 meters on April 19-20 to swell more than half a meter above the danger mark of 8.5 meters, the city administration there reported.
The governor of Russia's Tyumen region, Aleksandr Moor, has called the current floods the worst in over 80 years, with dozens of cities in the flood zone.
A state of emergency has been in effect since April 8, with urgent evacuations of the Kazan and Ishim regions last week.
In Kazakhstan, the Ural River, known locally as the Oral, was creeping toward the 8.5-meter level that is considered critical.
Kazakh authorities predicted that the peak of the flooding would arrive in most regions on April 20-21 but would persist until April 22–24 in the Oral region.
Officials have said that more than 100,000 people have been forced from their homes across the country because of heavy flooding.
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