Kazakhstan's Kostanay oblast hit by tornado, 12 injured

Sarykol village of Kostanay oblast in northern Kazakhstan has been hit by a tornado on June 26, Tengrinews reports.

The unexpected weather change surprised the city at around 1 p.m., when most of the villagers were watching a game at the stadium.

“At some point everyone just stopped watching the game and turned their attention to the black tornado whirl as tall as a 5-storey building. People began running away. But some still failed to avoid the eye of the tornado. One girl got sucked into tornado, according to reports, she suffered multiple fractures. Then the whirl hit the wall of a nearby building and disappeared. Ambulance arrived and took around 15 people away,” one of the villagers Kristina Bilak said.

Aftermath of the tornado. ©Kristina Bilak

Videos ©Kristina Bilak

According to Deputy Chief Physician of Sarykol District Hospital Gulnara Galiyeva, 12 people were injured in the accident. 10 people were brought to hospital immediately after the tornado tore through the town, and another two came in later that evening. “All of them had small injuries. Some had bruises, some abrasions. No one suffered any severe fractures. The smll girl that everyone is talking about - who was allegedly sucked into the whirlwind - was in fact brough to the hospital in the evening, because she had a stomachache. Her parents wanted to make sure she was alright and came to the hospital. But she only had to be checked by a doctor. The second girl was brought to the hospital with a fever. In general, the situation is not as terrible as people are describing it," Galiyeva said.

Besides, she said that no one came to the hospital with burns from the coals that were allegedly pulled from the barbecue in the cafe by the tornado. 

Writing by Assel Satubaldina, editing by Tatyana Kuzmina