Tornado wreaks havoc in eastern Istanbul

A powerful, non-supercell tornado over water has caused damage after it hit the eastern shores of Istanbul on June 19.

The tornado, a rare occurrence for northwestern Turkey, was first seen over the Marmara Sea before passing through the Pendik and Tuzla neighborhoods in eastern Istanbul and reached the province of Kocaeli.

The tornado caused some material damage in Tuzla, Doğan News Agency reported June 20. Villas in the Mercan area were severely damaged. The tornado picked a yacht up from the sea and threw it into a residential area’s garden 100 meters away. Fences wore torn up, roofs sheared off and bricks hit several windows, shattering glass around the area. 

Officials had warned the public of heavy rain, as the images of the tornado were widely shared on Turkish social media in the aftermath of the damage.