Officials in Russia’s Dagestan region issued an emergency declaration Saturday following torrential rains that caused severe flooding and knocked out electricity for hundreds of thousands of residents.
City leaders in Makhachkala, the regional capital, announced the emergency measures as floodwaters swept through the area. “Emergency services have been placed on high alert, efforts are under way to deal with the aftermath, and assistance will be provided to affected residents,” the Makhachkala city administration said on Telegram.
The power outages have affected more than 327,000 people across the region, according to Dagestan’s emergency management ministry. “As of 12:00 (Moscow time, 0900 GMT), 283 settlements with a population of 327,183 people, including 89,705 children, remain without electricity,” the ministry reported on its website.
Regional leader Sergei Melikov acknowledged that while emergency crews had prepared for severe weather, the actual conditions “exceeded even the most pessimistic forecasts.”
The flooding also caused significant infrastructure damage, with authorities in Khasavyurt, the region’s second-largest city, reporting that heavy rains destroyed a railway bridge. “Two spans of the bridge collapsed on the Khasavyurt–Kadiyurt section of the North Caucasus Railway,” Dagestan’s government press service announced.
Weather forecasters predict the intense rainfall will persist through Sunday, potentially worsening conditions across the region.
