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Thousands at risk of flooding in case of Kakhovka Reservoir dam rupture — politician

This will not be a single wave, it will also include 50 cm to 1 meter of water, Vladimir Rogov said

MELITOPOL, May 4. /TASS/. A ruptured dam near the town of Kamenka Dneprovskaya on the Kakhovka Reservoir due to record-high water level may threaten tens of thousands of Zaporozhye Region residents with flooding, says Vladimir Rogov, Chairman of the We are Together with Russia movement.

"The Kakhovka Reservoir is overflowing, it is at record-high level. It was at record-low level this winter, but now, the level has risen by 17 meters, it is 2.5 meters higher than the norm. This really poses a risk of man-made disasters or incidents at the very least. […] Water is already filling the basements in several settlements in the Kamenkodneprovsky District, the dam may break," Rogov told TASS.

"There are really thousands of people living in the potential flooding area, there are dozens of settlements and towns. This will not be a single wave, it will also include 50 cm to 1 meter of water - it is very uncomfortable. This issue will affect tens of thousands of Zaporozhye Region residents," he noted.

According to the politician, the high water level is partially caused by the weather.

"This is connected with rains that were happening for weeks; it is also connected to the fact that Zelensky’s regime uncontrollably discharges water into the Kakhovka Dam, filling it over its natural level. […] I am cautiously optimistic on this issue: it is dry now, the sun is shining, the wind is blowing, so I think that the water level will begin to drop. No matter how much water the Ukrainian side discharges, it is impossible to discharge enough through the Dnieper Hydroelectric Dam to cause flooding," Rogov explained.

He added that discharge of water from the Kakhovka Reservoir downstream is also complicated due to damage inflicted on the Kakhovka Dam.

In late April, Novaya Kakhovka head Vladimir Leontyev told TASS that Ukrainian authorities discharge water upstream of the Kakhovka Reservoir after a flooding in several districts of Kiev.