Authorities in the northern Kazakh town of Petropavlovsk declared a state of emergency on April 25 after the Ishim River burst its banks, causing severe flooding and sparking evacuations in some areas.
According to reports, the flooding occurred after a surge of water from the nearby Sergeevskiy reservoir, which was bulging after unusually heavy rain and snow during winter. Authorities had urged residents in flood plains to evacuate. Kazakhstan’s DK News reported that more than 120 people had been evacuated from at-risk areas on April 23. By April 25, more than 100 homes were flooded, according to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.
Four days earlier, high water levels at the reservoir were reported to have caused damage to an observation deck.
