The rain was accompanied by gale-force winds in places, with gusts in excess of 60 kilometers per hour. So far, the Boğaçayı Creek in Konyaaltı has overflowed its banks and the lower storeys of about 60 apartment buildings have been flooded, according to Antalya Fire Chief Emin Pehlivan. He said firefighters were trying to drain the water from these buildings. Officials from the Antalya Municipality have issued further flood warnings.The Sarısu River, which also empties into the sea, overflowed when its path was blocked by giant waves, causing the Antalya-Kemer highway to be closed to traffic, Gençağa Karakaş, a Regional Highways Administration official, said. “The Kemer highway has been closed. There is nothing we can do for now. This will continue as long as the river cannot empty into the sea.” He also said some vehicles were stranded.
He said the Highways Directorate was planning to prepare the Atınyaka-Kesme Boğazı road as an alternate route to the Antalya-Kemer highway. “We have sent our teams there. If we can ensure safe travel on that road, we will reopen the road to traffic in the direction of Antalya-Altınyaka-Kesme Boğazı-Kemer.”
Meanwhile, the storm ran two ships, both flying Turkish flags, aground. Antalya Port Administration officials said they were continuing work to rescue the ships. Both entry into and exit from the port have been suspended for now.
