One person died and several houses were destroyed after temporarily A facility closing the locks of a shipping channel north of St. Petersburg was swept away by incoming waters of the White Sea-Baltic Canal, Reuters reported, citing the State Safety Committee of Russia's Karelia region, as quoted by BTA.
Seven people were rescued from the waters of the channel, 227 km long, which connects the White Sea in the Arctic with the Gulf of Finland in St. Petersburg, according to a message from the committee on the social network "VKontakte".
Authorities said the flooding began after a temporary facility was destroyed during restoration work, and added that they were working to determine what happened.
Video footage released by Russian media shows the channel turning into a raging river, carrying tree branches and other debris downstream.
Rescuers are still looking for two women, the committee reported.