Disabled woman dies in Turkey’s northwest flood

SAKARYA – Anadolu Agency

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A disabled woman died after being carried away in a flood that took over the northwestern province of Sakarya on June 23. 

Heavy rain took over Sakarya at noon, during which the Karadere creek in the Serdivan district flooded and led to the death of 38-year-old Gülderen Altınbudak. 

Altınbudak, a disabled citizen, was inside her house, when a truck carried by the flood hit the house and took her into the overflowing water. 

Locals together with the Search and Rescue Association (AKUT) and the Prime Ministry Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency (AFAD) conducted rescue efforts to save Altınbudak but her dead body was found around three kilometers away from her house. 

Altınbudak was reported to be with her young daughter when the flood came.  Altınbudak’s daughter was saved by the top of the truck, where she managed to stay when the flood took her mother away. 

Many houses and offices were flooded across the city due to the heavy rain that came down in a short time span. 

Meanwhile, the D-100 motorway linking Istanbul to various cities in Anatolia, which also passes through Sakarya, was flooded and blocked temporarily by trees come loose from a nearby factory, Doğan News Agency reported.