Four dead, 5 missing as record downpours flood Istanbul
Some districts received more than 200 millimeters of rain in about 21 hours, and schools closed as authorities logged more than 1,200 flooding reports in a single day.
Four people died in Istanbul after torrential rain that began late Tuesday flooded streets, homes and businesses across the city, with some districts recording their highest rainfall totals in years.
A 14-year-old child was electrocuted after stepping into a pool of water in a park in the Fatih district, and a 34-year-old died after slipping and hitting their head on a curb while crossing a flooded street in Sarıyer, İklim Haber reported.
The Istanbul governor's office said emergency services received 2,518 calls between 6 a.m. and 8 p.m. Wednesday, including 1,277 reports of flooding, 15 landslides and 47 people trapped. The Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality's Disaster Coordination Center (AKOM) recorded 242 millimeters of rain in Beykoz, 190.5 millimeters in Eyüpsultan and 170.2 millimeters in Sarıyer.
"Under normal conditions, when 100 kg per square meter of rain falls in 24 hours, we describe this as very heavy rainfall," Acting Mayor Nuri Aslan said, noting that some areas had received 200 kilograms per square meter in about 21 hours. He urged residents to stay away from streambeds and avoid driving unless necessary.
Schools closed for a day, and the governor's office banned motorcycles from the roads from 9 p.m. Wednesday until further notice. The Turkish State Meteorological Service (MGM) issued rain warnings for 48 provinces, including orange alerts for Bursa, Kocaeli, Sakarya, Yalova, Düzce and Zonguldak.
This article was produced with the assistance of AI tools and reviewed by an editor before publication.
