Fred

🇹🇷🌧️ Istanbul under water: nearly 100 mm of rain in 12 hours, 1,277 flooding incidents, schools closed Thursday — no serious injuries reported so far Torrential rain flooded Istanbul on Oct. 14, inundating homes, businesses, roads and underpasses and stranding vehicles in a city of about 16 million. The Istanbul governor's office reported 1,277 flooding incidents and 15 landslides, 47 people stranded, and damage affecting 808 homes, 280 businesses and 76 vehicles; congestion across the city reached about 90% at the evening rush hour. The heaviest rainfall, 193.84 mm, was recorded in Ömerli in Beykoz on the Asian side, and the city received nearly 100 mm citywide in 12 hours. Roads collapsed in the Eyüpsultan and Gaziosmanpaşa districts, and flooding hit hospitals, a metro station and a school. About 8,000 personnel and 2,000 vehicles and machines were deployed. The governor suspended schools for Thursday, put some public employees on leave, urged people to stay home, advised basement residents to spend the night elsewhere and barred motorcycles from traffic. Reported by AP, Daily Sabah, Bianet and Anadolu. AP reports no serious injuries; Anadolu reported at least three people hurt in rain-related incidents. Bystanders rescued a woman swept along a street and firefighters rescued a person from a flooded basement. I found no report of deaths. More rain is expected to move toward the Bosphorus and the Asian side through Thursday morning. This is an extreme rain event hitting a dense city, which is why the damage is concentrated in underpasses, basements and roads rather than in a single disaster. The warnings to avoid basements and stay home are the key safety advice. What to watch: whether the rain persists on the Asian side, any new reports of casualties, the restoration of roads and metro service, and how quickly drainage and collapsed road sections are repaired. Sources: Istanbul Governor's Office; AFAD; AP; Daily Sabah; Bianet; Anadolu Agency; Türkiye Today.