Flooded locals outside Chita roleplay Gandalf the Gray to keep their mayor from helping himself

You — shall not — pass! 🧙

Locals in the flooded town of Biofabrika, outside Chita, blocked a convoy of dump trucks delivering soil to city council chairman Anatoly Mikhalev. Residents told reporters from the local TV station ZabTV that they waited four days for help from the government, received no assistance, and then learned that Mikhalev was getting deliveries to fill in his property. “Why is the road impassable on the next street, but the road to his home is so much better? All of Chita is flooded! And he’s filling in his own land,” one angry resident told the camera crew.

On July 8, rivers in the Zabaykalsky Krai started spilling their banks, due to heavy rains. Flooding has damaged hundreds of apartment complexes and spread to six towns throughout the region. More than a thousand rescue workers are now on the scene, where local officials have declared an emergency.