Missing Bulgarian in Turkey Floods Found Safe and Sound

Society | September 10, 2009, Thursday // 11:17
Bulgaria: Missing Bulgarian in Turkey Floods Found Safe and Sound People walk through a flooded main highway connection road in Istanbul, Turkey, 09 September 2009. West of Turkey is under effect of heavy rain storms and flood. Photo by EPA/BGNES

The Bulgarian citizen, a truck driver, who was reported missing in the flash floods triggered by torrential rains in northwestern Turkey, has returned safely to his home country, it emerged on Thursday. 

The man was close to drowning after his truck was hit by the gushing water, but managed to escape and returned to Bulgaria, the Foreign Ministry spokesman Dragovest Goranov announced.

He has called the General Consulate to say he is alive and feels good.

One Bulgarian national was killed in the floods, a young hitchhiker, who drowned after the car he was traveling in near Istanbul sank.

At least 31 people were dead after two days of torrential rains triggered flash floods in northwestern Turkey, sweeping cars into the sea and sending gushing water into homes and businesses, authorities said Wednesday.

Twenty-six people were killed in Istanbul province and five in neighboring Tekirdag province, according to Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Nine people were feared missing, he said.

At a news conference in Istanbul's Disaster Management Center, in front of walls of TVs showing live video feeds from Turkey's largest city, Erdogan expressed condolences to families that lost loved ones during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.

He said emergency workers rescued an estimated 1,300 people from the flash floods and pledged billions of Turkish lira for disaster relief in Istanbul and Tekirdag provinces.

He also chided developers who built commercial and residential structures in riverbeds that are vulnerable to flooding.

"Our ancestors had a saying: 'The river's revenge will be heavy,' " Erdogan said. "We should remember what our ancestors said."

In the wake of this week's disaster, the prime minister called for relocating all such settlements from riverbeds and moving them to safer ground.

Several roads in Istanbul city remained closed, including the airport road.

 

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