Three people die as heavy rain causes flooding in Istanbul
Rescuers worked overnight to save hundreds of people stranded at their workplaces.
Heavy rain has shut down Istanbul, flooded homes and roads and killed at least three people, officials said.
Rescuers worked overnight to save hundreds of people stranded at their workplaces, while bystanders helped countless others.
The downpour on Wednesday night flooded homes and businesses and inundated roads and underpasses, stranding vehicles and causing traffic chaos in Turkey’s largest city.
The Istanbul governor’s office reported three deaths in the city and said four other people were reported missing.
A 14-year-old was electrocuted after stepping in a puddle at a park in the Fatih district, and a 34-year-old slipped on a pavement in the Sariyer district and hit their head, local media reports said.
The governor’s office said the body of a third victim was discovered near another park in the Kagithane district.
Interior minister Mustafa Ciftci said that more than 2,700 people who were stranded by the floods were safely evacuated throughout the city.
The Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality said that some areas had the highest amount of rain since 1985.
In the province of Sakarya, around 93 miles east of Istanbul, a two-storey house that was built on a riverbed collapsed in the floods, HaberTurk television reported. It was not immediately known if anyone was inside the structure.
The country’s weather agency has predicted more showers for Istanbul and the surrounding area in the coming days.
The governor’s office extended a school closure order to include Friday. On Thursday, some state employees were placed on leave.
Advice issued by the governor’s office late Wednesday had asked residents to stay at home unless travel was absolutely necessary.
Motorcycles, meanwhile, were barred from traffic.