According to the city authorities, more than 4,000 houses and some 10,000 people are in the affected area near the border with Kazakhstan, and at risk of being flooded.

Local authorities had earlier already asked residents in several streets to evacuate, according to the TASS news agency.

According to the Interfax agency, rescuers are currently working to repair the dike in the city of 220,000 residents.

The Orenburg region has been lashed with heavy rainfall, with more than 1,800 homes in 95 localities flooded, and more than 3,000 people evacuated, the governor's press service said Friday.

Russia is regularly impacted by extreme weather events, which has been exacerbated by climate change.