More than 10 dead as floods hit Turkey’s Black Sea provinces
BARTIN/SİNOP/ARTVİN/ORDU/ANKARA/KASTAMONU
This week’s floods in Turkey’s Black Sea region have claimed at least eleven lives, and at least one person is missing, officials said on Aug. 12.
Floods due to heavy rains hit the northern Black Sea region on Aug. 12, leaving nine people dead in the Kastamonu province and one missing in the Bartin province, said the Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD).
Rescue and relief teams have been deployed to flood-hit areas, and the search for the missing is ongoing, according to officials.
While evacuations of some areas continue, the Turkish Red Crescent is also on the scene to help people affected by the natural disaster.
Two people died in a landslide caused by flooding in Çatalzeytin district in Kastamonu province, according to a statement by the Çatalzeytin municipality.
In Ulus district of Bartın province, one of the hardest-hit areas, Arife Ünal, 85, went missing after her house was destroyed. Teams from the Gendarmerie, Coast Guard and Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) along with residents are continuing the search.
Floods also damaged homes and businesses while sweeping away vehicles in Bartın.
Thirteen people were also injured when their vehicles overturned due to a collapsed bridge. They were taken to nearby hospitals.
The disaster agency said there were power outages in a dozen villages in Ulus district.
A public hospital in Ayancık district in Sinop province was also evacuated, according to AFAD.
Meanwhile, 19 people who were stranded in their homes due to heavy rains in Ayancık were rescued by two helicopters, the Coast Guard Command said in a statement.
The evacuation of stranded residents is continuing in Avdullu village, where around 70 people are waiting, it said.
The Turkish National Defense Ministry also said military helicopters are in the region to evacuate residents to safe areas and hospitals.
The Interior Ministry warned residents of Kastamonu, Bartın and Sinop not to leave safe zones and to refrain from using roads near floods.
Officials in Sinop said heavy rains will continue Wednesday and Thursday and warned residents of possible floods and landslides.
Kastamonu and Karabük provinces were also affected by the floods, with water damaging buildings, vehicles and agricultural fields
Meanwhile, in Yusufeli district of Artvin province, two separate groups were stranded on a road when a landslide blocked their way.
The first group consisted of 11 people and the second comprised 10. They asked for help from the local gendarmerie using their mobile phones and were rescued after two hours.
In Fatsa district of Ordu province, five people who were stranded at a fish farm due to flooding were rescued.
Environment and Urbanization Minister Murat Kurum toured the flood area in Ulus district in Bartın late Wednesday.
Speaking at a news conference in the district, Kurum said work to evaluate the cost of the damage in Bartın is underway following the floods. Three buildings were found to be derelict, while three others are heavily damaged.
“Hopefully, we will reach missing Arife Ünal as soon as possible and will take steps to heal the wounds of our citizens,” he said.
The damage to the Bartın-Karabük highway will be repaired and opened to transportation at the latest on Thursday morning, he added.
As many as 300 people were evacuated to safe areas and 15 others were housed in a dormitory as a precaution in Ulus district, AFAD said in a statement late Wednesday.
There were power outages in a total of 31 villages across Bartın province, it added.
The evacuation of disaster victims continues also in Cide district of Kastamonu province and Ayvancık district of Sinop province, the disaster agency said.
The Kastamonu-Azdavay highway was closed to transportation and there were power outages in 168 villages across the city, it said.
Sinop Türkeli-Ayancık road was opened to transportation while nearly 100 village roads in Ayancık district were closed, it added.
