66 houses, 264 shops damaged in Turkish flood as officials visit Black Sea province

ORDU

'Wrong urbanization' in Turkey's Black Sea region is blamed as the source of the increasingly destructive flash floods

Flash floods caused by heavy rains that hit Turkey's northern Ordu province damaged 66 houses and 264 shops, the country's vice president said on Aug. 9.

Vice President Fuat Oktay and Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu on Aug. 8 visited the Black Sea province of Ordu where torrential rains have caused massive flooding.

Oktay travelled to the Ünye and Fatsa districts of Ordu to inspect the damages the flooding caused in the towns. He also visited a hospital in Ünye to meet with people who were injured in the disaster.

"At the moment, we don't have any casualties or citizens who are in need or whose needs have not been met. The climate has been changing [...] and so we also need a change of mindset," Oktay said.

Oktay, accompanied by Ordu Governor Seddar Yavuz, Ordu Mayor Enver Yılmaz, and Turkey’s Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) President Mehmet Güllüoğlu, said the government will swiftly provide the necessary relief.

Soylu also visited the Ünye district. He inspected the Cevizlidere Bridge that partially collapsed because of the heavy rains and the resulting flooding. Soylu was briefed on the ongoing work in the aftermath of the events.

“President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is very clear about this: All material damages will be compensated by our government and our state,” Soylu said.

“The region received much more rain than expected. In some areas rainfall was 20 kilograms per square meters, while in some areas it was up to 95 kilograms,” the minister said, adding that there were no casualties.

Torrential rains on Aug. 8 caused massive flooding and landslides in the northern and southern regions of Turkey, particularly hitting the Black Sea region where at least four bridges collapsed and hundreds of people were rescued after being stuck in their homes or cars.

Ünye Mayor Ahmet Çamyar told journalists seven people were injured during incidents related to flood.

A bridge on the highway between Ordu and the neighboring province of Samsun was among the four that collapsed due to floods.

In Ordu’s Perşembe district, four cars crashed in a tunnel amid the flooding, leading to a fire.

“The transportation infrastructure has completely collapsed and 30 tons of walnuts have also been destroyed” due to the floods, said Ordu’s Çaybaşı district mayor, İsmet Yanık.

“This is the third flood in 20 days and we are coping with it by our own means,” Yanık added.

Several tonnes of hazelnuts brought by flash floods formed islets off Ordu on Aug. 9.