Thousands of people have been evacuated from their homes due to flooding in a region of south-western Russia.

Emergency services have been working through the night after a dam on the Ural River was breached in the city of Orsk, near the border with Kazakhstan.

Earlier, an emergency was declared across the entire Orenburg region after levels in the Ural River rose dangerously because of melting ice.

Officials say three bodies have been found in the area, although their deaths are not thought to be directly related to the flooding.

Local emergency services said they were working to stem the flooding in Orsk.

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