It’s a problem those of us in the Middle East rarely see, but flash flooding has just hit a major city: Istanbul.
Lasting a mere two hours but causing up to 114 kilograms of rain per square metre, Istanbul over the weekend experienced one of its worst floods to date.
The rain severely hit the majority of Istanbul, Turkey’s largest city, with shops being ruined, underpasses flooded, public transport halted and the famous Grand Bazaar left with waist deep water in places.
The Grand Bazaar stands as one of the largest and oldest covered markets in the world, having construction started in 1455 and completed in around 1730. It encompasses 61 streets with over 4,000 shops to peruse.
A video from the Euronews shows closely the extent of the damage to the Grand Bazaar and Istanbul as a whole:
The flooding also halted the ferry services connecting Asian and European sides of the city. Cars were stranded and had to be rescued by the fire department and various squares, walkways and underpasses can be seen as totally flooded.
The worst of the heavy downpour is now over.
