Heavy rainfall, floods wreak havoc across country

TRABZON

Heavy rainfall swept across the country, flooding five of the 81 provinces and severely disrupting daily life, while experts have warned of more rainy days ahead, set to impact most regions.

Torrential rains on Sept. 20 triggered landslides and flooding in four districts of Trabzon on the Black Sea coast, while heavy downpours in another Black Sea city of Samsun and the eastern provinces of Bitlis, Van, and Erzurum resulted in widespread flooding.

Numerous residential streets in the inner regions of Arsin, Yomra, Araklı, and Sürmene districts became impassable due to landslides and flooding from the intense rains in Trabzon.

Teams are using both air and ground resources to search for 65-year-old Ali Kemal Demir, who went missing during the floods and landslides in the province.

Flooding affected several neighborhoods, particularly in the Karayazı district of Erzurum, due to heavy rainfall. While animal shelters were damaged by rising waters from a nearby stream, teams took urgent measures to prevent the deluge from reaching residential areas.

Bitlis experienced significant flooding and overflow due to intense rainfall that had been falling intermittently for days, severely disrupting daily life, especially in the Ahlat district.

A neighborhood about 40 kilometers from Van's Başkale district experienced flooding, with yards and some barns near an overflowing stream inundated.

In several Samsun neighborhoods, the heavy rain resulted in deluges that hindered both drivers and pedestrians from carrying out their daily activities.

Professor Dr. Yusuf Demir noted that these erratic precipitations would persist for a while across the country, with the risk of flooding continuing as well.

Prominent meteorologist Professor Dr. Orhan Şen also warned of heavy rainfall gripping the country in the upcoming days, with Adana, Gaziantep, Hatay, Kahramanmaraş, Trabzon and Osmaniye provinces being issued a “yellow alert,” which indicates a “potential threat by a weather event.”