A “colossal” amount of water is moving towards the Russian city of Kurgan, the region’s governor has said.

Vadim Shumkov said that the swollen Tobol river and its tributaries had produced water levels twice those of the last major flood in 1994.

Floods over the past two weeks have forced evacuations of tens of thousands of people from northern Kazakhstan and bordering areas of Russia.

They are caused by the rapid melting of snow and ice combined with heavy rain.

On his Telegram channel, Mr Shumkov urged everyone in areas threatened by flooding to leave their houses immediately, with waters expected to rise as high as 11m (36ft) above normal.

“This isn’t just a flood, it’s a genuine threat!” he said.

“Therefore, take children, elderly people, relatives with limited mobility and neighbours to a temporary detention centre or to friends and acquaintances. Collect documents and valuables.”

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