Heavy rain has brought severe flooding to Istanbul, killing two people and forcing the rescue of nearly 600 others who became stranded as streets turned into rivers. A 14-year-old died from electrocution in a waterlogged park in the Fatih district, while a 34-year-old fell in Sariyer and suffered a fatal head injury. Schools have closed, basements have flooded and major roads have become impassable, with cars left half-submerged in debris-strewn water.
The disruption has spread to the city's airports. Flight-tracking data showed 41 cancellations and more than 550 delays at Istanbul Airport on Thursday, with another 12 cancellations and 272 delays at Sabiha Gökçen. Wednesday was even rougher, with roughly 90 cancellations and over 1,000 delays across the two hubs combined. Operations on the M9 metro and the T1, T3 and T5 tram lines have since resumed, but clearing crews are still working through closed roads.
Turkey's State Meteorological Service warns the break may be temporary: rain was forecast to return on Friday, intensifying overnight and continuing through Saturday, hitting Istanbul's northern European-side districts and eastern Kırklareli hardest. Authorities have flagged risks of further floods, lightning strikes and landslides.
The UK's Foreign Office has not advised against travel to Turkey but is telling visitors to follow local media and heed instructions from officials, including evacuation orders. Istanbul's governor, Davut Gül, has urged people to stay indoors, avoid driving, steer clear of basements, puddles, stream beds and flood-prone underpasses, and call the 112 emergency number if needed.
If you're booked to go, the frustrating reality is that cancelling will likely cost you. Because there's no warning against non-essential travel, tour operators have no obligation to refund you, and insurers generally won't pay out for safety worries unless official advice changes. A few policies do include natural disaster cover, so it's worth checking the small print if the forecast worsens.
For anyone already mid-trip, the good news is that flights departing from or arriving in the UK carry protection under UK law — airlines must provide care and assistance when cancellations happen. And with the city's bazaars, hamams and Byzantine-and-Ottoman landmarks largely unaffected in the historic core, most visits should proceed normally once the rain system clears. The sensible move is to keep an eye on Turkish Meteorological Service updates, build buffer time into any airport transfers, and skip sightseeing in low-lying underpasses while the water is high.
