4,000 people evacuated

Russia yesterday said it had evacuated 4,000 people in the Orenburg region, in the southern Urals near Kazakhstan, due to flooding after a dam burst.

Emergency services had been working through the night after a dam burst in the city of Orsk, near the border with Kazakhstan.

The press service of the Orenburg governor said "4,208 people, including 1,019 children" had been evacuated and more than 2,500 homes were affected by the flooding after a dam burst on Friday following torrential rain.

Russia opened a criminal case for "negligence and violation of construction safety rules" over the burst dam, which was built in 2014.

Authorities said the situation was difficult throughout the region, warning of a dangerous water level on the Ural river in the main city of Orenburg.