At least nine people have drowned in severe flooding in southern Russia, authorities said Saturday, declaring a state of emergency, DPA reported.
"Seven villages and 17 residential areas were flooded," the Civil Defence Ministry in the Kraznodar region, near the Black Sea told the news agency Ria Novosti.
Around 300 people had had to be brought to safety, but others were still missing, authorities said.
President Dmitry Medvedev charged the minister for regional development, Viktor Basargin, with setting up an aid programme for the victims.
The region has seen heavy rainfall recently, particularly in Tuapse, north-west of the spa town Sochi.