RSOE Emergency and Disaster Information Service

Situation Update No. 5

Posted:2010-03-12, 08:00:29 [UTC]

Ref.no.: AC-20100312-25291-KAZ

Situation Update No. 5
On 2010-03-16 at 08:17:44 [UTC]

Event: Technological Disaster
Location: Kazakhstan Almatinskaya Oblast Distric t of Aksuisky

Number of Deads: 37 person(s)
Number of Evacuated: 3000 person(s)

The number of victims of last week's flood that destroyed a village near Kazakh financial hub Almaty has risen to 37, a deputy prime minister said Tuesday. "According to the preliminary data of the Emergencies Ministry, 37 bodies have been recovered already," Aset Isekeshev told a government meeting. The previous toll was 34. Eager to show decisive leadership at a time of economic hardship, President Nursultan Nazarbayev has ordered the government to investigate the rupture Friday of a dam, and bring to justice those responsible. In a statement issued after Nazarbayev's order, the interior ministry said it had detained five officials including the mayor of Kyzyl-Agash, a village which was completely destroyed when the nearby dam burst, flooding hilly pastures north of Almaty. Spring flooding is a frequent occurrence in Central Asia but a sudden rise in temperatures following weeks of heavy snow storms has exacerbated the problem this year.