(Reuters) – Heavy rain caused a dam to burst in central Russia’s Chelyabinsk region on Friday, prompting officials to evacuate several nearby villages, local authorities said.
The Chelyabinsk regional government in the southern Ural mountains, said on the Telegram messaging app that a 100-metre section of the dam at the Kialimsky reservoir had burst and four villages were in the path of rising water.
Altogether, about 200 people were under threat. Officials said dozens were being evacuated as a preliminary measure and no injuries had been reported.
Rescue teams from Russia’s Emergencies Ministry and the regional centre of Karabash were dispatched to the area and reception centres were set up for evacuees.
(Reporting by Ron Popeski, Editing by Nick Zieminski)
