Heavy flooding caused by the rising Euphrates River in Syria has driven hundreds of families from their homes and claimed several lives, including children. TASR writes about it according to the report of the DPA agency.
Local officials said Friday that one man drowned in Raqqa province. They added that in the neighboring province of Deir ez-Zour four children were killed, swept away by the strong current of the Euphrates River. At the same time, the Syrian authorities reported that the floods there damaged approximately 24,000 hectares of agricultural land, 265 government buildings and about 60 civilian facilities.
Flooding is a consequence unusually heavy rains in the region, including neighboring Turkey. Due to the extremely high water level in the dams in the region, especially in Turkey’s Atatürk Dam, the Turkish authorities had to control way to release huge amounts of water. To avoid overloading their own facilities, Syrian operators also opened the floodgates on their dams.
The water level then suddenly rose and flooded extensive sections of the river banks. Syrian Energy Minister Muhammad Bashir accused the Turkish authorities that the Syrian authorities received news of the rising water level of the Euphrates too late.
In the meantime, interim Syrian President Ahmad Shara visited affected areas to assess damage and humanitarian needsthe state news agency SANA reported. The general director of the Euphrates dam told the DPA agency that the water level should drop within two days. Turkey has since closed its floodgates.
