The water level in the city of Orenburg continued to rise on April 13 as a deluge from heavy rains and snowmelt accelerated by unseasonably warm temperatures forced mass evacuations in southern Russia and in neighboring Kazakhstan.
Some flood-hit residents in both countries continued to criticize authorities for what they perceived an unsatisfactory response to the crisis.
The Ural River reached record levels in Orenburg, a city of half a million people, where the water rose to 11.71 meters on April 13 from 11.43 meters on April 12 -- more than 2 meters above the critical mark of 9.3 meters, according to regional Governor Denis Paler.
"We hope that this is a plateau -- that there will be no more increases, the situation will stabilize, and then a decline will begin," he said on Telegram.
Pasler, speaking during a video conference with President Vladimir Putin late on April 11, had said the previous record level of the Ural was 9.4 meters in 1942.
Later on April 13, local publication Ural56 reported that the river near Orenburg had risen again, reaching 11.8 meters, although local authorities have not yet confirmed the latest figures.
The governor's press service reported that 17,203 households were flooded and that 13,194 people had been evacuated as of 9 a.m. on April 13.
Swollen rivers around the border areas between Russia and Kazakhstan have wreaked havoc over the past week, pushing tens of thousands of people out of their homes. Aerial photos show massive swathes of submerged residential areas.
Before-And-After Satellite Imagery Reveals Devastation From Floodwaters In Russia
Some 100,000 people have been evacuated from their homes in neighboring Kazakhstan, authorities say, including in the northern city of Petropavl following an alarm launched at 7 a.m. on April 13.
Due to the disruption of the power grid, water services were cut off in the city. Videos appeared to show members of the public demanding water at shops in the city and long lines were seen in front of trucks delivering water on the streets.
City authorities vowed that supplies of bottled water would be delivered to retail sites in Orenburg over the next two days.
A state of emergency has been declared in several regions of both countries, but some inhabitants have been sharply critical of how the authorities have handled the crisis.
At least five people have died during the floods, and on April 8 local residents picketed the local government’s headquarters in Orsk -- a city in the Orenburg region -- demanding increased efforts to deal with the dramatic situation and calling for Putin to intervene.
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A Flood Of Anger As Russia Struggles With Raging Waters
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on April 9 that Putin did not plan to visit the Orenburg region at the moment, stressing that the president "is taking care of the issue" without being at the site.
In Kazakhstan, Nadezhda, a resident of the northern village of Petrovka, told RFE/RL that people know that "a lot of water" is coming toward the village but that "no anti-flood work was carried out, the mayor didn't do anything."
"People here are used to flooding, but when we heard the levels were so high and had risen over the dam, people were overwhelmed and began to panic."
Kuanysh Amanshiev, a resident of the district of Kobda in Kazakhstan's Aqtobe region, told RFE/RL that floodwaters had made the family home unliveable.
"Last year, when my yard was flooded, [the local government] provided 20 bags of cement," he said.
"After this year's flood, my house is completely unequipped. We're all empty. I'm glad [the government] provided me with a place to live.... But this is not a place to build a house -- it’s an embankment. This is a question that someone should answer," he added.