INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
The southern Russian city of Orenburg is expected to face major flooding in the next 24 hours as water levels in the nearby Ural River
burst late Friday near the city of Orsk.In the regional capital of Orenburg, which has a population of about 550,000 people, the river
embankment, several neighborhoods and some surrounding settlements have been underwater since late last week.The Ural River in Orenburg rose
by 82 centimeters on Thursday morning, reaching 10.6 meters in height, which according to a local meteorological center is 1.3 meters above
Siberia as well as northern Kazakhstan to reach unprecedented levels.Russian authorities say they have evacuated more than 7,700 people,
mostly from the worst-hit Orenburg region, while Kazakhstan said around 100,000 of its citizens had been evacuated as of Wednesday
Russia estimates that 10,500 homes were flooded across 37 regions.AFP contributed reporting.
