Flash floods hit Erbil, the capital of Iraq's Kurdistan Region, on Saturday after heavy rain, killing one person and leaving a young child missing, the Kurdish news outlet Rudaw reported on Saturday night.

Source: Rudaw

Kurdistan24 reported that the person killed was a volunteer rescuer, and that the missing child is five years old. Rudaw's report, published at 11:40 p.m. local time on Saturday, carried the same headline figures: one killed, one child missing.

Source: Kurdistan24

Homes flooded north of the city, traffic stopped

The Kurdish outlet Kurdiu reported that floodwater running down from the Salahuddin Resort Road, north of Erbil Governorate, flooded a number of houses along its path toward the Korean residential complex, and that traffic stopped in areas north of the governorate.

Source: Kurdiu

Local residents told Kurdiu that at least one child was missing after being swept away by the torrential water, and that no one had been able to save him. The report carried a Brayati dateline, a district in the north of Erbil.

Rudaw published fly-camera images from Saturday night showing Sheikh Ahmad Street in Erbil under water, with cars stranded in the flooded roadway — the photograph used at the top of this report.

Prime minister follows up, urges protection measures

Kurdistan24 also reported, in a separate item on Saturday, that the Kurdistan Region's prime minister had followed up on the flash floods in Erbil and urged measures to protect residents. No updated official toll had been reported in the coverage Awaaz Punjab reviewed late on Saturday, Toronto time.

1Person killed in the Erbil floods, Rudaw and Kurdistan24 reported
5 years oldAge of the missing child, Kurdistan24 reported
Nov 7Day the flash floods hit Erbil after heavy rain

A city that has flooded fatally before

Erbil is the capital of the semi-autonomous Kurdistan Region in northern Iraq. The city has suffered deadly flash floods before when intense rain overwhelmed streets and drainage: in December 2021, floods in Erbil killed at least eight people, provincial officials said at the time, according to Kuwait's KUNA news agency.

What happens next: the early reports do not say whether the missing child has been found, and the first figures from a flood night often change as civil defence teams complete their work. Awaaz Punjab is reporting only the figures carried by Rudaw, Kurdistan24 and Kurdiu, and will update this story if officials publish a confirmed new toll.

What is solid

  • Flash floods hit Erbil, in Iraq's Kurdistan Region, on Saturday, November 7, after heavy rain — reported by Rudaw, Kurdistan24 and Kurdiu.
  • One person was killed and a child was missing, all three outlets reported; Kurdistan24 said the dead person was a volunteer rescuer and the child is five years old.
  • Homes were flooded north of Erbil and traffic stopped in northern areas of the governorate, Kurdiu reported.

What is only claimed

  • Some social-media roundups claimed a higher death toll, including a child among the dead; Awaaz Punjab could not verify those claims in any official or reputable report and is not reporting them.
  • Whether the missing child has since been found had not been reported by Rudaw, Kurdistan24 or Kurdiu in the coverage reviewed for this story.