ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - At least seven people, including five children, have died and four others remain missing after heavy rainfall triggered flash floods across several Syrian provinces, Emergency and Disaster Management Minister Raed al-Saleh said on Friday, as rescue teams continued operations for a third consecutive day.
“We have recorded the deaths of seven people, including five children who drowned in pools of water formed by the floods and a man who died in a traffic accident caused by the flooding,” Saleh said in a post on X.
He added that rescue teams had saved 60 civilians whose vehicles were trapped by floodwaters, while intensive search operations were underway to locate four missing people.
The severe weather has affected Aleppo, Raqqa, Deir ez-Zor, Hasaka, Hama, Idlib, Homs, Latakia, Tartous and Daraa provinces.
“As of this morning, the ministry’s Syrian Civil Defense teams have carried out more than 550 field operations” across the affected provinces, Saleh said.
He added that emergency teams had received more than 900 reports, with life-threatening incidents being prioritized, followed by efforts to protect property and secure roads and public facilities.
The flooding has also forced evacuations from schools and displacement camps.
According to Saleh, rescue teams safely evacuated two schools accommodating more than 350 students and coordinated the evacuation of 375 families from camps in Raqqa province. Emergency teams also responded to incidents at seven camps in rural Aleppo and Idlib.
The minister said emergency crews had pumped water from approximately 250 homes and public facilities, including two hospitals, schools and bakeries.
They also recovered more than 150 vehicles stranded in floodwaters and drained accumulated water from over 100 locations along major roads.
“Ministry teams remain deployed in the affected areas, responding to emergency reports and distress calls, continuing search and rescue operations, and providing assistance to residents,” Saleh said.
The latest flooding comes months after severe weather battered northeastern Syria. According to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), flooding along the Euphrates River between late May and early June affected more than 27,000 people in Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor, displacing thousands and damaging critical infrastructure, including more than 60 water stations.
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