An engineer has been detained in connection with the dam breach at the Gejukha Reservoir.

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An engineer for a commercial organization was detained in Dagestan. He was tasked with overseeing the safe operation of the Gedzhukh Reservoir dam.

As reported by the "Caucasian Knot," the Gedzhukh Dam collapsed in the Derbent District of Dagestan on April 6. More than 350 residents from the village of Mamedkala and surrounding villages were evacuated. The floodwaters washed several cars off the highway, killing at least four people. The total death toll from the flood in Dagestan today reached six.

The environmental prosecutor's office reported that the owner and organizations using the reservoir complex "failed to ensure the safe operation of the hydraulic structure." The Volga Interregional Environmental Prosecutor's Office asked the Investigative Committee to open criminal cases for negligence and violation of environmental regulations during the operation of the facility.

A criminal case has been opened in Dagestan for safety violations during the operation of hydraulic structures, resulting in fatalities, the Investigative Directorate of the Investigative Committee of Russia for the republic reported on its Telegram channel on April 10.

According to the investigation, officials of the organization operating the hydraulic structure in the Derbent district violated legal requirements by failing to ensure the proper technical condition of the facility and by failing to take measures to correct the identified violations. The hydraulic structure had a defect, the organization's management failed to establish a control system, ensure the availability of emergency rescue equipment, and fail to establish an emergency plan. Furthermore, under the declared state of emergency, responsible officials failed to take measures to prevent the accident.

The report clarifies that this refers specifically to the dam failure of the Gejukha Reservoir, which resulted in fatalities and property damage.

An engineer from a commercial organization, whose job responsibilities included ensuring the safe operation of the reservoir's hydraulic structures, has been detained on suspicion of committing the aforementioned crimes. The involvement of other individuals in the crimes is being investigated.

The Institute of Geography of the Russian Academy of Sciences linked regular flooding in Dagestan to a combination of natural processes and anthropogenic impacts, which increases the scale of natural disasters and increases the risks for people.