Syria: Floods claim 5 lives, close roads, destroy bridges

Governorates of Raqqa, Al-Hasakah, and Deir ez-Zor, along with vast areas of the Badia in eastern Homs, Hama, and Aleppo, experienced heavy thunderstorm rains accompanied by hail and strong downdraft winds. This weather caused floods, flash floods, and the flow of wadis, leading to the closure of several roads the day before yesterday, prompting authorities to mobilize to manage the meteorological situation.

The floods resulted in the deaths of five people, including four children. The Ministry of Emergency Affairs and Disaster Management stated in a bulletin that “flash floods and heavy rainfall in several governorates” led to the drowning of four children in pools of water formed by flash floods in the governorates of Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor, as well as the death of a man in an accident at a major bridge in Raqqa. The ministry also reported the rescue of 25 people trapped by floodwaters in Deir ez-Zor, Raqqa, and Homs.

According to the ministry, the storm, which has affected the country since the day before yesterday, caused the disappearance of five other individuals, noting that search operations for them are ongoing. The Civil Defense published a map showing the status of public roads in the governorates of Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor due to the flash floods, according to the Operations Department in the Ministry of the Interior, and urged residents to avoid these areas.

The Directorate of Emergency Affairs and Disaster Management in Raqqa announced that Civil Defense teams carried out more than 110 field responses in the cities of Raqqa and Tabqa, receiving over 200 reports within one hour, amid ongoing efforts to remove the effects of flash floods, drain rainwater, and respond to reports from those affected.

Director Rami Al-Saloum told the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) yesterday that the rainstorm caused floods and submerged homes, leading to the displacement of families from damaged camps due to the deterioration of infrastructure and the inability of sewage networks to handle the volume of rainfall. He noted that flash floods submerged approximately 110 homes and displaced around 375 families from damaged camps in the countryside of Raqqa, including the Maqsouf, Yuni, and Sahlat Al-Banat camps. The floods also caused the collapse of the Al-Salmani bridge on the Raqqa-Aleppo road and damaged the Kasrat Surour and Al-Qantara bridges. Access to the city of Maadan was cut off due to road closures, although three women and four children trapped by water were rescued. Al-Saloum urged residents to comply with instructions from relevant authorities and avoid rumors and unverified information to ensure their safety.

For his part, Dr. Abdulqader Al-Quli, director of Tabqa National Hospital, confirmed the raising of medical and ambulance staff readiness and the recall of specialist doctors to handle potential injuries, noting that limited resources might necessitate transferring critical cases to the National Hospital in Raqqa. Al-Quli pointed out that the hospital received two women swept away by flash floods, who received necessary care and were discharged in good health, while the body of a deceased man was transferred to the forensic medicine department in Aleppo.

Meanwhile, Awad Al-Awad, head of the implementation department in the Tabqa Municipal Council, confirmed that municipal staff and machinery were mobilized since the start of the storm to address water accumulations and open roads, despite limited available resources.

In Al-Sabkha, Municipal Council head Obaida Al-Khader explained that the council mobilized all its resources since the beginning of the storm to secure main roads and ensure citizen safety, in cooperation with service and technical departments in the governorate. Al-Khader noted that heavy rains caused the Kasrat Surour and Al-Ajeel bridges to go out of service, in addition to damaging three bridges on the Dalh Al-Fawqani (Al-Madiq) road, necessitating urgent intervention to repair damages and ensure traffic flow.

In Deir ez-Zor governorate, precautionary measures included suspending classes at schools and the Euphrates University due to the weather conditions affecting the governorate, while the General Water Company announced...

The Ministry of Water Resources suspended, on a temporary basis, the operation of drinking water pumping stations in the western countryside of the governorate, due to rising turbidity levels in the Euphrates River waters caused by heavy rains in the area. Ahmad Al-Mousa, the company’s director, told SANA that this step aims to protect equipment and pumps from technical failures and ensure the quality of water supplied to residents, with pumping to resume immediately once turbidity is addressed.

In Idlib Governorate, Civil Defense teams responded to the heavy rains that hit the area. They worked in Idlib, Sarmada, Hazano, and Kafr Yumoul to open roads and drain rainwater, in addition to removing stranded vehicles from the roads. Teams also worked along the Idlib-Bab al-Hawa road to facilitate vehicle traffic, and operations are still ongoing.