NThe floods have not only severely affected the southern regions of Russia, but thousands of people are also fleeing from the floodwaters in Kazakhstan. The civil protection agency there announced that more than 33,000 people, more than half of the city's population, had to leave Kulsary in western Kazakhstan since Friday. Some have been taken to the Tengis oil field, about 80 kilometers away, where many Kulsary residents work.
North of the city, the river Emba, or Shem in Kazakh, has overflowed its banks and a canal runs through the city. At least two men have died in Kulsary trying to reach the house with a tractor.
In western Kazakhstan, eight cattle graves and 14 places where the ashes of animals killed by anthrax are kept have been flooded. Authorities described the situation as stable. Atyrau, the capital of the region, 230 kilometers west of Kulsary, where more than 315,000 people live, is also preparing for floods. It is located along the Ural River, or Shayq in Kazakh, which rises in Russia and flooded part of the city of Orsk in Orenburg Oblast after a large amount of water was released from a reservoir.
Flooding also has serious economic consequences
In Orsk, the dam broke in several places. The director of the company that built it in 2014 cited “rodents” as a possible cause that could have “perforated” the dam. Flooding also has serious economic consequences. The oil refinery in Orsk had to shut down; As one of the largest refineries in Russia, according to experts, it accounts for one and a half to two percent of fuel production. With other refineries forced to shut down after drone strikes in Ukraine's defense of Russia's war of aggression, and gasoline production officially down 14 percent by the end of March, the failure is particularly severe; According to the news agency Reuters, Russia has asked Kazakhstan to prepare 100,000 tons of gasoline in case of an emergency.
On Monday, numerous orskers protested in the city center, for whom the announced compensation of about 1,000 euros for the complete loss of property and 500 euros for partial loss of property was too low. “Putin, help!” they appealed to their president and secured a meeting with the regional governor, who promised them “market rate” compensation and a “new dam”.
Vladimir Putin no longer wants to travel to the region; His spokesman confirmed that Putin remains “constantly present on this issue”. On the other hand, the President of Kazakhstan, Qassim-Jomart Tokayev, visited the country's flood zones and spoke about what is likely to be the biggest natural disaster in more than 80 years.
Rescue workers also use rubber boats to bring livestock to safety from floods in the western Kazakh city of Kulsary.
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Image: EPA