Floods and Heavy Rains Hit Turkey, Bulgaria, and Greece, Resulting in at Least 5 Deaths

Torrential rains and flooding along the borders of Turkey, Bulgaria, and Greece have led to the tragic loss of at least 5 lives, with several individuals still reported as missing.

As reported by Al Jazeera, the flooding struck a holiday resort in Turkey's Kirklareli province, near the borders with Bulgaria and Greece, where approximately 12 tourists were staying at the time.

"The search and rescue efforts for the four missing persons are ongoing continuously," stated Turkey's Interior Minister, Ali Yerlikaya.

Rescue teams have already located two bodies and successfully rescued six people.

In Greece, authorities have imposed traffic restrictions in the city of Volos, the adjacent mountainous Pelion region, and the resort island of Skiathos due to record-breaking rainfall that caused flooding on the streets. One person tragically lost their life near Volos when a wall collapsed upon them.

Five individuals are currently considered missing, presumably swept away by the floodwaters.

Rising waters overflowed their banks, carrying away vehicles, while rockslides blocked roads. In many areas, power outages were reported.

Greece's Meteorological Service disclosed that the village of Pelion received 75.4 cm of rain late on Tuesday, marking the highest recorded level since at least 2006. For context, the average annual rainfall in the Athens region is approximately 40 cm.

Greece's Minister of Climate Crisis and Civil Protection, Vassilis Kikilias, predicted that the heavy rain would cease after noon on Wednesday. He advised residents in affected areas to stay indoors.

"This is an extreme event," remarked Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis during a meeting on Tuesday with Greek President Katerina Sakellaropoulou.

These storms and floods followed devastating forest fires that have plagued Greece in recent weeks, resulting in the tragic deaths of over 20 people.

Bulgaria's Prime Minister, Nikolai Denkov, announced on Tuesday that two individuals had lost their lives, while three others were missing following a storm that caused flooding along the southern Black Sea coast.

"A man and a woman have died," Denkov told reporters from the flood-stricken town of Tsarevo.

Several hundred holidaymakers along the coast were evacuated to safer locations. Authorities declared a state of emergency in Tsarevo and urged people to move to higher ground, as the floodwaters inundated the ground floors of some hotels.

Floods, a rarity on the Black Sea coast, are becoming more common in Bulgaria due to climate change and poor infrastructure maintenance.

As previously reported by The Gaze, Slovenia has also suffered from sudden floods, with estimated damages exceeding half a billion euros, according to the country's Prime Minister, Robert Golob. He described the flood as the "worst natural disaster" in the country's history.

The nation, with a population of two million, was hit by a severe flood in early June after heavy rains covered approximately two-thirds of the country. The meteorological service reported that the monthly rainfall norm fell in less than a day, resulting in accumulations of up to 200 mm of rain in some areas.

The rain triggered river surges, demolishing buildings, roads, and bridges while also prompting landslide warnings.

Six fatalities have been reported, including two Dutch tourists, and hundreds have been left homeless, with around 8,000 individuals in the north and east of the country forced to evacuate.