Istanbul Rainfall Death Toll Rises to Five

The Istanbul Governor's Office announced an increase in the death toll due to unprecedented heavy rains hitting the city since Wednesday to five people, while two others remain missing.

The office clarified that search teams found the body of a person who went missing following floods in the Kagithane district on Wednesday, bringing the city's victim count to five. Turkish private channel NTV reported that the victim is thirty years old and holds Turkmenistan nationality.

Istanbul Governor Davut Gul confirmed that two other people are still missing so far. The heavy rains, which intensified Saturday night into Sunday, caused new flooding in the neighboring city of Kocaeli in the northwest of the country, and in the Pendik district of Istanbul.

In a separate incident in Gebze in Kocaeli, water swept away a car carrying three people; one managed to survive, while a second body was found on Sunday, and the third person remains missing.

Governor Gul indicated that the situation is improving as rainfall stops, saying: "We expect conditions to return to normal. We have now passed the critical phase. Almost all evacuation operations have ended."