Thousands of people have been evacuated in Kazakhstan after two dams burst near the city of Almaty. The authorities say there have been some deaths, but could give no information on numbers.

North of Almaty, a dam at a reservoir collapsed, and water flooded a village of 3000 people. In a separate incident a dam gave way under pressure from melt water after heavy snowfall, and around 800 people were evacuated. Hundreds of rescue workers have been sent to the scene of the disaster.