Evacuation operations underway as Russian Orenburg region battles record floods

The level of the Ural River rose to new record highs on Friday in the city of Orenburg as critical flooding forced the evacuation of tens of thousands of people in Russia and Kazakhstan, authorities said. Fast-rising temperatures have melted snow and ice, and along with heavy rains have caused a number of major rivers that cross Russia and Kazakhstan to overflow.
A regional official said that the peak in Orenburg would come only on Friday or Saturday. According to authorities, more than 10,700 people out of a population of more than 400,000 have been evacuated, and that around 11,700 homes have been flooded.