Dam flood death roll rises to 10, with 41 missing: Kyiv

12 Jun, 2023

KYIV: Ukraine on Monday said 41 people were still missing in the floods caused by a dam breach that it blamed on Russia, and which killed 10 people in the southern Kherson region.

The Russian-controlled Kakhovka dam along the front line in the Kherson region was destroyed on June 6, forcing thousands to flee and sparking fears of humanitarian as well as environmental catastrophe.

"Currently, we know about 10 dead in Kherson and the region," Ukrainian Interior Minister Igor Klymenko said on Telegram. "We are also reporting 41 people as missing."

Ukraine says Russia blew up Kakhovka dam to prevent offensive in south

The governor of the Kherson region, the most affected by the flooding, said two bodies were found on Monday in the regional capital, also called Kherson.

"Today, an unidentified woman and a 50-year-old man were found drowned in one of the city's districts," the head of the Kherson region, Oleksandr Prokudin, said on Telegram.

A day earlier, Prokudin said three people were killed as Russia shelled a rescue boat evacuating people after the devastating floods.

Kyiv has accused Moscow of blowing up the dam on the Dnipro River, while Russia has blamed Ukraine.

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