Floods hit the Kurdistan Region
Two missing after flooding in Duhok’s Nizarki district
DUHOK — Two people are missing after floodwaters swept through a tunnel in Duhok’s Nizarki neighborhood early Tuesday, according to the city’s Civil Defense Directorate.
Heavy rains caused water levels to rise across the city, leading to transportation disruptions and raising concerns about potential flooding, as forecasted by the region’s meteorology department.
Bewar Abdulaziz, a spokesperson for Duhok’s Civil Defense, said a vehicle carrying four people encountered floodwaters in the Nizarki tunnel. Two passengers were rescued by locals, but the remaining two were swept away and are presumed dead. Their identities have not yet been released.
Search operations are underway at the scene.
The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) issued a warning on its website late Monday regarding severe weather conditions expected overnight and into Tuesday. The warning, based on data from the General Directorate of Meteorology and Seismology, predicted heavy rainfall and potential flooding across the region. Duhok was forecast to receive up to 70 millimeters of rain.
Civil Defense teams in Erbil, the region’s capital, were also placed on high alert.
“We have taken all necessary precautions,” Erbil Civil Defense spokesperson Karwan Mirawdali told 964media. “Our teams are deployed in areas susceptible to flooding and are prepared to respond to any emergencies.”
Zhiar Jalal, Director of Street Cleaning Services in Erbil, added that crews had preemptively cleared known water accumulation points. These areas include under the Seidawa bridge, the vicinity of Family Mall, the Akram Mintik overbridge, the Turaq neighborhood, and behind the Gilkand neighborhood.