MOSCOW, April 6, 2024 (BSS/Xinhua) - The water levels in multiple small and medium-sized rivers in central European Russia have reached or surpassed danger marks, Scientific Director of the Russian Hydrometeorological Center Roman Vilfand has said.

 "The floodwaters are rising very intensely. For instance, in the Moscow, Vladimir, Kostroma, and other regions, the water levels in small and medium-sized rivers have reached dangerous marks. Local roads are being flooded, cutting off communities," Vilfand was quoted Saturday by Tass news agency as saying.

 Widespread floods have occurred in the Urals and Western Siberia in Russia and across Kazakhstan. Seasonal floods this year are intensified due to unusual heat and meltwater runoff from snow mountains.

 Most recently a dam breached in the southern Russian city of Orsk in the Orenburg Region on the Ural River Friday, with over 4,000 houses inundated and over 10,000 residents impacted. The city declared a state of emergency and has been organizing a mass evacuation. No injuries or casualties have been reported by local authorities so far.

 In the Central, Northwestern, and Volga Federal Districts, the water level has risen by 60-230 cm within a day. Rivers have hit the danger marks in the regions of Ivanovo, Moscow, Yaroslavl, Samara, Penza, Saratov, Tula, Orenburg, Tver, Bashkortostan, and Mordovia, Vilfand said.

 The meteorologist also mentioned that from Saturday, dangerous levels are expected on the Uver River in the Novgorod region, on the Protva River in the Kaluga region, and on the Sudogda River in the Vladimir region.

 Flooding of floodplains, buildings, and roads is anticipated on the Ilek and Ural rivers in the Orenburg region. A significant rise in water levels is expected in the Chelyabinsk and Sverdlovsk regions. Dangerous marks have been exceeded on rivers in the Altai Territory, in the Novosibirsk, Kurgan, and Kemerovo regions on the upper Ob and its tributaries.