Shafaq News- Kirkuk (Updated at 12:42)
Heavy rain and resulting rockfalls forced the closure of the highway linking Kirkuk province to Erbil on Sunday, as floods swept across several parts of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI), a Shafaq News correspondent reported, citing local officials and eyewitnesses.
The highway will remain closed until crews clear the debris and authorities assess the damage and confirm it is safe for motorists.
Erbil has been particularly hard hit, with floodwaters inundating homes and disrupting traffic. On Saturday, Erbil Governor Omed Khoshnaw confirmed the deaths of 28-year-old Mohammed Rasoul and five-year-old Mustafa Sarkout after floods struck the Seberdan area east of the province, damaging hundreds of homes, cars, and commercial shops.
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"The rainfall was far heavier than anything we had experienced before. Within less than 30 minutes, floodwaters poured down the main roads and swept into our yard and house," Ahmed, a resident of the devastated neighborhood, told Shafaq News on Sunday.
Floodwaters rose more than a meter inside his property, destroying furniture and electrical appliances and leaving residents no time to salvage their belongings.
"We couldn't get anything out. The furniture was
ruined, and the walls were severely damaged," he added.
Vehicles were also swept up in the powerful currents, with dozens carried away, thrown against one another, and left piled up near concrete barriers and drainage channels.
Taxi driver Aras Majid described how the flood caught him on the road as he tried to get home before conditions worsened. He eventually escaped through a window, but his vehicle, his sole source of income, sustained severe damage, including a destroyed engine and electronic systems.
Sardar Amin, whose private car was also swept away, recalled how it was carried more than 200 meters from outside his home before coming to rest on the outskirts of the Corniche. "The loss is substantial and came without warning," he said.
As heavy rainfall continued, authorities in Erbil suspended classes at schools and universities, while Civil Defense teams urged residents to leave their homes only when necessary to allow rescue and emergency crews to operate.
Kirkuk recorded the highest rainfall totals in Iraq outside the KRI, according to data from the Iraqi Meteorological Organization and Seismology Authority. Rainfall reached 29.2 mm in Rahim Awa, 24.4 mm at Kirkuk Airport, and 18.4 mm in the city center.
The flooding had also forced the closure of the Hawli road linking Baghdad and Kirkuk on Friday, in the Tuz Khurmatu district of Saladin province.
The Iraqi Meteorological Organization had warned of flash floods across northern and central Iraq, forecasting that rainfall would peak over the weekend before easing on Monday morning.
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