Russian officials continued to order the evacuation of areas in Siberia and parts of the south as massive floods sparked by heavy rains and a rapid snowmelt show few signs of letting up.
With thousands already forced from their homes, officials in the Tyumen region of western Siberia and Kurgan in the south near the border with Kazakhstan on April 16 ordered more to leave their homes as the Ishim and Tobol rivers continue to swell.
"Pack your valuables. Leave now for a safe place, to relatives or to a temporary accommodation center," said Aleksander Moor, governor of the Tyumen region, adding that those who didn't abide by the "urgent" evacuation notice could be fined.
Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev on April 16 arrived in Petropavl, a city of some 20,000 people near the Ishim River where the local governor said more than 10,000 people had been evacuated as parts of the city remained under water.
"We are going through tough times. This is a disaster of a national scale," Toqaev told residents. "I think the next 10 days will be critical, but we are already taking measures to rebuild the country and deal with the aftermath of this disaster."
Dozens of people whose houses were flooded in Petropavl gathered on April 16 at the city's Department of Employment and Social Programs. They said that they came to submit documents for the one-time allowance promised by the government and compensation for water losses.
One person standing in line at the agency told RFE/RL that people started gathering at 8 a.m. local time.
Toqaev’s office said that in order to free up money for disaster relief he had ordered the cabinet to cut all nonessential budget spending and cancel some events, including an international conference in the capital.
No End In Sight As Flooding Continues Unabated In Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Russia
In Russia's Kurgan region straddling the Tobol River near the border with Kazakhstan, 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 that runs through the region could see water levels rise to 11 meters, double the level where it breaks its banks in some places along its course.
More than 125,000 people have been evacuated from areas hit by massive floods in parts of Russia and Kazakhstan in recent weeks.
Following massive snowfalls in winter, unusually warm weather triggered the sudden melting of snow that in turn lead to the rapid swelling of rivers in what specialists say may be an effect of global climate change.
In northern Kazakhstan, where more than 111,000 people have been evacuated from flood-threatened areas since the start of this month, some residents have started to return to badly damaged houses.
The first to be affected by the massive floods was the city of Orsk, followed by Orenburg, both on the Ural. Now floods have reached the Kemerovo and Tomsk regions in western Siberia.
In the Kemerovo region, the Mrassu River overflowed its banks.
Nikolai Patrushev, director of Russia’s Security Council, said "huge material damage could have been minimized" if regional authorities had paid more attention to forecasting the water levels and responding more effectively.
