Turkish authorities said Thursday the death toll from the severe floods and mudslides that struck the north of the country has risen to 11. One other person is reported missing.
The floods battered the Black Sea coastal provinces of Bartin, Kastamonu, Sinop and Samsun on Wednesday, demolishing homes and bridges and sweeping away cars. Helicopters scrambled to rescue people stranded on rooftops.
As floodwaters began to recede across the affected regions in Turkey's north, a statement from the Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency, or AFAD, said rescuers had recovered six bodies in Kastamonu.
Later Thursday, four more bodies were found in the worst-hit town of Bozkurt, in Kastamonu, and one body was found in Sinop. An 80-year-old woman was reported missing in Bartin province. The disaster struck as firefighters in southwest Turkey worked to extinguish a wildfire in Mugla province, an area popular with tourists that runs along the Aegean Sea. The blaze, which was brought under control on Thursday, was one of more than 200 wildfires in Turkey since July 28.