Ankara flash floods: Six injured as heavy rains cause havoc

Flash floods caused by heavy rain have wreaked havoc in Ankara.

The heavy downpours occurred in the Mamak district of the Turkish capital on Saturday, injuring six people, according to state-run Anadolu news agency.

There were dramatic scenes of drivers trying to escape from their vehicles and several cars being swept down the street by flood waters.

Municipality workers rushed to the scene to pull out stranded motorists. Dozens of vehicles were damaged and many shops were flooded.

Ankara’s Mayor Mustafa Tuna said it was “a natural disaster like never before”.

A Turkish official explained that the rain was expected to last three hours on Saturday afternoon. It came down in just nine minutes, causing the flash flooding.

Turkey‘s labour and social security minister said six people were injured in the floods, which damaged more than 160 cars and 25 businesses. The minister said the government was working to assess and alleviate the damage.

Footage showed cars and trucks being swept away in the floods. One man escaped being submerged by climbing on top of a car caught in the flood.

Showers remain in the forecast for much of the week ahead and some of them will be heavy and thundery. It may even be next Saturday before the wet weather finally clears away.