Three children killed in flash floods in Turkey

Three children were killed Sunday in flash floods triggered by heavy rains pounding much of Turkey, the Anatolia news agency reported.

In the northwest of the country, a 6-month-old boy was swept away from his father's arms as the wooden bridge they were crossing near the town of Kocadere in Yalova province collapsed under the rising waters.

The father was saved, but rescuers found the baby's body a kilometer away from the bridge after a two-hour search, the report said.

Two sisters, ages 11 and 13, drowned when they were carried away by a river that burst its banks as they were tending farm animals near the town of Dargecit in southeastern Mardin province.

Since Thursday, much of Turkey has been hit by heavy rains, which have caused flooding in residential areas in several regions, including the country's biggest city Istanbul and the northern Black Sea coast.