Terrible floods in Kazakhstan: more than 70 000 people were evacuated, state of emergency declared

Ten regions of Kazakhstan have declared states of emergency after strong floods hit the entire northwest of the country.
The flooding was sparked by a sudden and early period of warm weather that caused huge amounts of snow to melt and overfill numerous rivers across parts of Kazakhstan and Russia.
Massive floods in Kazakhstan that began in March became the largest natural disaster in the country over the past 80 years, country's President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said.
"A natural disaster has occurred, the likes of which have not been seen for many years. This may be the largest disaster in terms of its scale and consequences over in the past 80 years," he said.
According to Tokayev, due to the floods, a local emergency situation has been declared in ten regions of the country. The president noted that following his criticism and instructions, the government boosted efforts to reduce the consequences of the flood and is taking appropriate measures.
According to the latest data from the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Kazakhstan, since the beginning of the floods, more than 3,000 private residential buildings and courtyard areas have been flooded, and 70 settlements remain without transport links. At the same time, more than 72,000 people have been evacuated. The national army has been deployed on rescue and aid missions across the regions. Over 8,600 people and 1,700 pieces of equipment, 411 water pumps and 65 watercraft, as well as 10 aircraft are involved in rescue operations.