At least five dead after floods in southeastern Turkey

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Four people were killed in Sanliurfa province, which borders Syria, and rescue operations were also carried out in rural areas, provincial governor Salih Ayhan told state broadcaster TRT Haber. Six people were reported missing. Authorities feared the death toll would rise further after the exceptional rainfall, Ayhan said.

The governor called on residents to stay in their homes or move to safe areas if necessary. Schools were closed for a day. According to the DHA news agency, not only residential buildings were flooded in Sanliurfa, but also the emergency department of a hospital. The patients were evacuated.

In the neighboring province of Adiyaman, in Tut district, about 110 kilometers to the north, a container house housing a family has washed away, according to Turkish Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu. One person has died. According to the media, four other residents of the container are missing.

Soylu called on the residents of Adiyaman to stay away from riverbeds. The day before, the heavy rain had already caused problems for the people in the earthquake area. More than 48,000 people died in the February 6 earthquake and many aftershocks in Turkey alone. After that, hundreds of thousands of people in the region were left homeless and housed in emergency shelters such as tents.

For example, the water penetrated tents in Iskenderun, Hatay province. As recordings from Haber Global broadcaster showed, the floodwaters washed away cars and damaged roads and bridges. Videos showed people swimming to safety. A report by broadcaster Habertürk showed how local residents rescue a man and a child from a flooded street in the city of Sanliurfa with a rope.

For the next two days, Turkish civil protection authority AFAD expected further heavy rains in the region and warned local residents of further storms and flooding. (SDA)

Source: Blick