Floods caused by Oct. 14-15 downpours killed eight people across Istanbul and neighboring Kocaeli, Istanbul Governor Davut Gül said Oct. 19, as officials calculated losses and prepared additional aid for affected residents and merchants.
Six of the deaths occurred in Istanbul. The bodies of two people swept away in Kocaeli were found in Istanbul’s Pendik district, Gül said. Crews were still searching for one missing person.
Gül said authorities received about 19,300 reports covering problems such as leaking roofs and ruined possessions. That figure is not a count of damaged properties. He identified serious damage at roughly 2,000 homes and 900 businesses and estimated agricultural losses at about 60 million Turkish lira.
Gül said 5,200 people received 10,000 lira each on Oct. 16. He said roughly 2,500 more were due to receive the same amount on Oct. 19, when payments based on assessed property losses were also expected to begin.
Trade Minister Ömer Bolat announced 80 million lira in cash support for merchants affected by the floods. The governor’s office was scheduled to receive the funds on Oct. 19 for distribution.
