Death toll reaches 144 in Southern Russia floods

As intensive relief operations continue in Russia's southern Krasnodar Region, devastated by outrageous floods, the death toll keeps climbing having reached the number of 144 people by Sunday morning. Russia's worst in decades floods ravaged this week several cities and residential areas in the Krasnodar Region, including Gelendzhik, Novorossiysk as well as Krymsk, a town with the population of 57,000 people, located some 87 kilometers (54 miles) from Krasnodar, according to Russian (RIA Novosti) news agency. "As of 6:00 a.m. Moscow time [2:00 a.m. GMT] 144 people were killed There were also 205 people, including 48 children, who asked for medical assistance," a spokesman for the Interior Ministry said adding that 77 more people were hospitalized. The Russian Interior Ministry earlier said that policemen involved in relief operations in the worst-hit town of Krymsk rescued 150 children. The governor of Krasnodar region, Alexander Tkachyov, has declared July 9 day of mourning for victims of the flood.