Putin urges probe into unproper flood warning

Acquaintances of Pyotr Ostapenko, 35, a flood victim, take part in a funeral ceremony at the central cemetery of the town of Krymsk in the Krasnodar region, southern Russia, July 9, 2012. [Photo/Agencies]

MOSCOW - Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday urged a thorough probe into the flood warning mechanism which didn't get all residents alerted ahead of the devastating floodings.

Emergency Situations Minister Vladimir Puchkov told a government meeting on Monday that people in the Krasnodar Territory were not fully warned of the floodings, local media reported.

Preliminary assessment indicates that some residents in Krasnodar didn't get timely alert of the disaster. "Local officials and certain emergency departments made mistakes," Puchkov was quoted by RIA Novosti news agency as saying.

Putin instructed Investigative Committee, the main federal investigating authority to probe relevant government bodies and persons in charge of informing the public on the floods.

"It is necessary to carefully and thoroughly investigate this case and make objective conclusions," Putin was quoted by Itar- Tass news agency as saying.

Meanwhile, Krasnodar Territory Governor Alexander Tkachev on Monday dismissed head of the Krymsk regional government for inefficient disaster relief works.

He slammed officials in the disaster-struck Krymsk for slow flood-victim-aiding efforts.

By 10 am Moscow time (0600 GMT), more than 170 people were reported dead in the Krasnodar Territory, 800 others were hospitalized, and 24,000 families were left homeless, Tkachyov citing a report.

Preliminary analysis shows the disaster caused 1 billion rubles ($30 million) of damage for the region's budget, said the governor.