Emergency teams in Dalaman, in Türkiye’s southwestern Muğla province, used boats on Wednesday to rescue residents trapped in homes along the Tersakan stream after it burst its banks, the İhlas News Agency (İHA) and local outlet Aksiyon reported shortly after 13:00.
Rain that began overnight sent the stream’s flow up suddenly. The Tersakan runs through the centre of the district, and according to both reports many neighbourhoods and large areas of farmland were left under water.
Update, 15:20: Dalaman, Fethiye, Ortaca, Köyceğiz and other Muğla districts are under an orange warning for heavy rain on Thursday, Republic Day; see our rain warning report. Runoff also carried sand from about 250 metres of Dalaman’s Akkaya beach into the sea, İHA and Aksiyon reported.
Update, 19:30: The Muğla Governor’s Office said that by 16:00 the 112 emergency line had received 94 calls about the rain and that more than 250 personnel with over 100 vehicles, machines and boats were working across the province, DHA and Muğla Gazetesi reported. In Dalaman’s Kargınkürü, 5 people and 33 animals were moved to safety; in Darıyeri, a rock fell on a house and its 4 residents were evacuated. Work was continuing in Kapıkargın.
Boat rescues and evacuations
According to İHA, people living in houses beside the stream were cut off by the rising water. Teams from AFAD, Türkiye’s disaster and emergency management authority, worked with the fire brigade and security forces to bring them out by boat. Evacuations began in some areas, and entry to some neighbourhoods was closed for safety. Neither report said how many people were rescued or evacuated or named the affected neighbourhoods, and no injuries were reported.
Aksiyon reported that roads in the district centre had become impassable and that some streets and neighbourhood entrances were closed to vehicles and pedestrians. It said officials warned that the rain was continuing and the risk had not passed, and urged residents to keep away from dangerous areas and follow official instructions. Rescue and response work was still under way when the reports were published.
Escalation from the morning
Earlier on Wednesday, the Doğan News Agency (DHA), as carried by BirGün, reported that the overflowing Tersakan had flooded some homes, workplaces and gardens in low-lying parts of Dalaman, and police closed the old Dalaman–Fethiye road, as we reported at midday along with flooding in Bodrum and Marmaris. Dalaman Mayor Sezer Durmuş said municipal teams were working on the situation and urged residents to take precautions.
For residents and visitors
Anyone living in or travelling through Dalaman should avoid the stream banks and low-lying roads, follow instructions from AFAD, the municipality and the police, and allow for closures on local routes, including the old road towards Fethiye. More on the area is in our guide to living in Fethiye.
Sources
- Muğla Dalaman’da Tersakan Çayı taştı! İlçe sular altında, mahsur kalanlar botlarla kurtarılıyor (İHA via Haberler.com)
- Dalaman’da Tersakan Çayı taşınca ilçe sele teslim oldu (Aksiyon)
- Muğla Dalaman’da sel! Mahsur kalanlar ekipler tarafından kurtarıldı (Sabah)
- Muğla’da sağanak: Bodrum’da caddeleri su bastı, Dalaman’da çay taştı (DHA via BirGün)
Photo: mwanasimba from La Réunion / CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
