Fierce winds blow through Istanbul, killing four

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - A fierce storm with gale-force winds struck the Turkish city of Istanbul on Monday, resulting in at least 4 deaths, according to the governor’s office.

In a statement, the governor said that adverse weather conditions had been in effect since the early hours of Monday morning, in a day that saw the deaths of 4 people, including one foreign national. Nineteen others were injured, three of them being in serious condition.

Windspeeds of up to 130 kilometres per hour were recorded in the district of Beylikduzu, state weather officials announced on Monday.

The storm also caused severe damage to buildings, ripping off roofs, flipping vehicles over, and even toppling over a clock tower, as seen in footage shared on social media.

Strong winds also disrupted air traffic, with 6 Turkish Airlines planes unable to land in Istanbul, and rerouted to Ankara and Izmir instead, according to the Associated Press. 

In a follow-up press briefing, the governor announced that strong gusts are expected to continue into Tuesday afternoon.