12 dead as tigers and lions roam Tbilisi after floods

Police and soldiers were hunting down the animals, recapturing some and shooting others dead, while rescuers airlifted scores of people trapped by the floods.

Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili called on Tbilisi residents to stay indoors while the animals were still at large, describing the damage to the city’s infrastructure as “substantial” after the River Vere burst its banks after hours of torrential rain.

“Our latest estimate is that the death toll is 12,” Tbilisi Mayor David <g data-gr-id="15">Narmania</g> told journalists.

The mayor’s office said dozens of families had been left without shelter and thousands without water and electricity in the city. Several main roads were completely destroyed and small houses and cars were swept away by the <g data-gr-id="22">torrents,</g> while half a dozen coffins in a city cemetery were washed out of the ground and lay on the mud.