The smell, the cause of which is still unknown, spread across many areas of Sakarya’s Erenler district, causing panic among residents who sensed the smell and took to the streets.
Alarmed by the strong smell, citizens took to the streets wearing masks, claiming that the smell was coming from the Sakarya River.
AFAD, fire brigade, natural gas authorities and police teams were deployed to the area where the chemicals were allegedly leaked into the river.
The team has launched an intensive study to identify the source of the smell, and their work to collect samples from the Sakarya River continues.
“The smell won’t stop”
“I was sitting at home when suddenly the smell, like natural gas, spread. I went outside and saw the whole neighborhood was outside,” said Oguz Bertan, who lives on 3043rd street in the Küptüler district and went outside because of the smell. “We called the natural gas authorities and they came here and started investigating. They say chemical waste was dumped into the river. We are beyond ourselves,” he said.
“I can not breathe”
“Right now, poison is coming out of the Sakarya River. Children and the elderly cannot breathe. They say that toxic waste is being dumped into the river,” said a citizen named Atila.
Sakarya Governor: Values are well below danger limits
Sharing an initial assessment of the work carried out by regional teams following the incident, Sakarya Provincial Governor Yaşar Karadeniz said, “AFAD readings are far below the danger limits. The teams are investigating the source of the smell.” he said.
Sakarya Governor’s statement on scent:
A written statement prepared by the governor stated that residents had complained to the 112 emergency call unit about the smell in the Erenla area.
An initial assessment by the AFAD team found that the odors detected in the statement did not pose a risk to public health and the following statement was made:
“Under the coordination of the Governor, a team of 25 people from the State Directorate General of Environment, Urbanization and Climate, the Metropolitan Municipality, the Municipality of Erenler and AFAD was formed and immediately began investigating the cause of the odor. The necessary detailed information will be provided in due course. Once the source of the odor has been detected, it will again be shared with the public.”
