Water levels rise in Russian rivers in flooding zone

Water levels in the Ural and Tobol rivers kept rising on Thursday near Russia's cities of Orenburg and Kurgan, respectively, authorities said in the regions hit by unusually strong spring floods. In the Ural, which flows from Russia to Kazakhstan, water rose another 32 cm (13 inches) and stood 124 cm (49 inches) above the level considered safe, the local government said.

The water level in the Tobol river rose 8 centimetres (3 inches) overnight in the city of Kurgan, the RIA news agency cited local authorities as saying. The worst of the floods was still to come, the Kremlin warned on Wednesday.

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