Up to a metre of water fell overnight in parts of north-west Turkey, including in the city of Istanbul where large sections of the Iktelli neighbourhood on the city's European side and many major roads were submerged.

The roads were busy with people making their way to work, who found themselves trapped by the floodwaters and were forced to climb on top of their cars to await rescue. Istanbul's emergency services used boats and helicopters to reach people trapped in cars and stranded on rooftops.

At least 23 people have died, and this figure is expected to rise as a number of people swept away by the floodwaters are still missing. Dozens of houses and workplaces in Istanbul were flooded after two of Istanbul's rivers overflowed.

The city's deputy governor Hikmet Cakmak described the floods as a "disaster".

Torrential rain has lashed the north-west region of Turkey since the beginning of the week, with floods killing nine people on 8 September in the town of Saray in the far west province of Tekirdag.

The authorities are coming in for criticism as this is not the first time heavy rains have caused such problems and many of the areas worst-hit are places where illegal construction has taken place on flood plains.

Pictures of Flood: