Flash Flood: 200 Evacuated as Floodwaters Sweep Through Turkey's Black Sea Region

Flooding in Turkey's eastern Black Sea region has led to the evacuation of about 200 people, said the Turkish disaster management agency.

Overflow of Arhavi River

Due to torrential rain, the Arhavi River overflowed thereby affecting the district center and village roads in the Artvin province in a bad way, said Turkey's Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD).

In the Arhavi district, around 6 people were stuck and in the Murgul district 9 were conveyed to safe regions, the statement added. On Twitter Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said that one person was saved from the rubble in Arhavi and carried to a hospital was in a good state.

Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu and Adil Karaismailoğlu,Transport and Infrastructure Minister, also came to visit the affected region.

There were electricity cuts in the area. 3,045 subscribers were left with no electricity because of floods in the closeby provinces of Artvin and Rize, The Energy and Natural Resources Ministry reported. On Twitter, the ministry said because of security measures the energy of 9,650 subscribers was cut off.

The Rescue

For now, Turkey's Search and Rescue Association (AKUT) came to the rescue of 18 people, and eight children, who got trapped in Arhavi's Mencuna Waterfall.

Not less than six people lost their lives, with two people unaccounted for, in flooding and landslides prompted by torrential rain last week in the Rize province. A local news website Gundem Rize posted a video and it showed gushing flood waters carrying a village house away.

Nobody was injured in the incident that was gotten on camera, said Local media reports. Turkey's Interior Ministry officials told Reuters one person was unaccounted for and over 200 people were evacuated from their affected homes.

Turkey's Black Sea coastal region is an area floods are common especially this time of year.

Effects of Flooding

Variety of negative impacts are produced if areas used for socio-economic activities are affected by flooding. The seriousness of the adverse impacts depends on the susceptibility of the activities, population, intensity, frequency, and strength of flooding.

Loss of lives and property is one of the major effects of flooding. Immediate impacts of flooding are damage to property, loss of human life, non-functional infrastructure facilities loss of livestock, destruction of crops, and health deterioration due to waterborne diseases. Unexpected flash floods with little or no warning time lead to more deaths than riverine floods that rises slowly.

Flooding can also lead to loss of livelihoods. As means of communication and infrastructure like power plants, bridges, roads are damaged and disturbed, economic activities is been discontinued, leading to dislocation and the dysfunction of the usual life for a period of time that extends beyond the duration of the flooding.

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