Scores missing, buildings collapse in 'worst ever' floods in Turkey's Black Sea region
Photos: AA/Kastamonu
Click to read the article in Turkish (1) (2) (3) / Kurdish
The official death toll from floods in Turkey's northern Black Sea region has risen to 38 while scores of people are missing according to locals who shared videos showing the impact of the floods on social media.
Heavy rainfall in Kastamonu, Bartın and Sinop on Wednesday (August 11) has led to floods in the three provinces.
Thirty-two of the deaths were in Kastamonu, the hardest-hit province from the floods. Six others died in Sinop province, while one is missing in Bartin province, according to the Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD).
It said 112 villages in Kastamonu and 86 villages in Sinop have been left without electricity, adding that a fund of 20 million Turkish lira (2.4 million USD) has been allocated for the region.
Thousands of AFAD personnel are working in the disaster zones, according to a previous statement by the agency.
The death toll in Kastamonu's Bozkurt district may rise further as scores of people are missing, according to videos shared by locals on social media.
As locals cried for help, the hashtag "Bozkurt is annihilated" (#BozkurtYokOldu) became a trending topic on Twitter in Turkey. Here are some of the videos shared under the hashtag:
Kastamonu, Bozkurt çok korkutucu görüntüler... #bozkurtyokoldu pic.twitter.com/F33ALmTzKI
— Hava Forum (@HavaForum) August 12, 2021
Sesimizi duyuyor musunuz? #Bozkurtyokoldu ! pic.twitter.com/nvVFDtW5mR
— Cide Belediyesi (@cidebelediyesi) August 12, 2021
#bozkurtyokoldu anlamıyorsunuz. Çocukluğumuz burada geçti şimdi aynı yerden arkadaşlarımızı, ailemizi topluyoruz. Yardım istiyoruz artık, ölmek değil.. pic.twitter.com/0vX6WXFfGl
— Betül (@Betulmanavoglu) August 12, 2021
The water level rose to three to four meters as the first floors of many buildings were flooded, photos and videos from Kastamonu's Bozkurt district showed.
Visiting Kastamonu yesterday (August 12), Minister of Interior Süleyman Soylu said it was "the worst flood disaster I have ever seen."
Bozkurt district was split into two and transportation between the two parts was not possible until around 5 a.m. yesterday, he said.
Minister: Worst I have ever seen
The minister dismissed the claims that the massive floods in Bozkurt were caused by the collapsed gates of a hydroelectric dam on the Ezine Stream.
"When this kind of a flood disaster happens ... it's immediately said that 'the hydroelectric power plant collapsed' if there is one in the area. I had seen the same thing in Arhavi," said the minister.
Citing officials from the State Hydraulic Works and the Ministry of Energy, he said there was no such reservoir that could burst in this power plant.
The number of floods has significantly increased in Turkey's Black Sea region over the past few years with environmental groups and experts citing hydroelectric power plants as the main cause of many of them.
CLICK - There are 246 active hydroelectric power plants in Turkey's Black Sea region
CLICK - Human-made disasters in Turkey's Black Sea region
CLICK - Number of floods increased by 19 times in 28 years
(AÖ/VK)