Residents in Armavir have been evacuated due to the threat of flooding.
Residents in Armavir have begun evacuating from the flooded area following heavy rainfall, which significantly raised the water levels of the Kuban and Urup rivers.
Due to rising water levels in the Kuban and Urup rivers, the risk of flooding in Armavir's coastal areas remains.
According to experts, an emergency water discharge from the reservoir near Nevinnomyssk is underway, and there is a risk of critical levels being reached. The Armavir administration reported this afternoon on Telegram that the water was expected to reach the city by 5:00 p.m.
The Krasnodar Reservoir, built between 1968 and 1973, is the largest reservoir in the entire North Caucasus. It is fed by the Kuban River and the Laba River, which flows into it. When the artificial sea in Adygea was filled with water, 1,200 hectares of land were flooded, including 700 hectares of arable land, 16,392 hectares of forest were cut down, and over 11,829 people—the population of 13 villages—were relocated. Twenty-eight cemeteries and five mass graves were relocated; the rest remained underwater. "When there was no reservoir, Krasnodar was protected from severe floods by floodplains, such as the Pavlovsky floodplains. Here, the water lost its destructive power—it would spill over and then flow into the Kuban River via a bypass canal. Now the bypass canal is filled in, and the Pavlovsky floodplains are located between two Krasnodar microdistricts—Gidrostroiteley and the village of Pashkovsky. They are planning to build another large microdistrict on this territory. In the event of an emergency, this place will be the first to be flooded," said Viktor Chirikov, a civil engineer and activist with the Environmental Watch for the North Caucasus.
"Following an emergency meeting of the emergency commission, a decision was made to begin evacuating residents from potential flood zones flooding since 4:00 PM today. These areas include Staraya Stanitsa, Krasnaya Polyana khutor, Yubileyny settlement, part of the Severny microdistrict, Barannikov Lane, and the Khimik, Stroitel, and Zarechnoye gardening associations, the official statement reads.
The administration recommended that residents in the flooded area move valuables to upper floors, collect documents and essential items, and prepare for evacuation. Residents are advised to either stay with relatives in safe areas of the city, or At the evacuation collection points (at School No. 7 and at the Krasnaya Polyana village club).
"At present, 24-hour water level monitoring is being organized on the rivers. The situation remains dynamic, and the water level can change in any direction,” the administration noted.
Later, the Armavir administration reported that, according to specialists from the Nevinnomyssk hydroelectric complex, water discharge has currently decreased compared to lunchtime levels. This may indicate stabilization of the hydrological situation, but the high alert regime has not yet been lifted.
"Kavkazsky Knot" also reported that on April 24, in the Yuzhnenskoye rural settlement of the Belorechensky district, a local emergency regime was introduced due to the flooding of at least 40 residential areas. By April 26, the number of flooded residential areas exceeded 230, water also entered 48 private homes and a multi-story building. By May 3, 16 courtyards were flooded in Belorechensk and the villages of Yuzhny and Vostochny after heavy rainfall.