UPDATE 5 - Floods in Turkey’s Black Sea region have claimed 11 lives: Officials

UPDATES DEATH TOLL; CHANGES HEADLINE, LEDE; ADDS DETAILS

By Seda Sevencan and Beyza Binnur Donmez

ISTANBUL (AA) – This week’s floods in Turkey’s Black Sea region have claimed at least 11 lives, and at least one person is missing, officials said Thursday.

Floods due to heavy rains hit the northern Black Sea region on Wednesday, leaving ten people dead in Kastamonu province, one dead in Sinop province, while one is missing in Bartin province, according to the Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD).

Rescue and relief teams have been deployed to flood-hit areas, and the search for the missing is ongoing, according to officials.

While evacuations in some areas continue, the Turkish Red Crescent is also on the scene to help people affected by the floods.

The charity said it sent two mobile kitchen trucks to the region to serve hot meal and water for 10,000 people.

So far 323 people in Bartin, 682 in Kastamonu, and 302 in Sinop have been evacuated.

Several bridges in these cities have been damaged or have collapsed due to the floods and 274 villages have been left without electricity.

Meanwhile, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan Thursday spoke with local officials of flood-hit areas over the phone and ensured that Turkey is using all available means to help people recover after the floods.