ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – A grieving father recalled the heartbreaking final words of his five-year-old son, who was killed on Saturday as flash floods swept through Erbil, leaving two people dead and causing significant damage across the city.

Erbil’s streets were bustling with life on Saturday evening when sudden torrential rains swept across the city, quickly flooding neighborhoods and turning streets into raging torrents. Shortly after, currents of floodwaters were sweeping through several of the city’s neighborhoods. 

Footage circulating online showed thousands of vehicles trapped in floodwaters, with cars crashing into one another and being swept away, while passengers abandoned their vehicles to save their lives and some drivers remained trapped inside.

Mustafa, just five years old, was in a car with his father when their vehicle was swept into a large, water-filled ditch. His father managed to escape, but Mustafa remained trapped inside, with rescue teams discovering his body hours later.

Speaking to The New Region, Mustafa’s father, Sarkawt, said he had brought his son to work with him that day near the Hawleri Nwe area, as he loved accompanying him.

“He loved it so much. I would take him with me sometimes. That day, he kept insisting, asking to come along. I agreed and told him I would also take him to the barber. When we left, we found ourselves caught in this catastrophe,” he said.

Mustafa’s last words to his father were, “Daddy, what if we died?” Sarkawt recalled.

Recounting the incident, he said the car quickly filled with water, leaving Mustafa trapped inside.

“He disappeared. Otherwise, I know how to swim and could have pulled him out, but he disappeared. Everything was muddy, and I couldn’t see anything,” he said.

“We are thankful. God gave him to us, and it is God who takes him from us,” Sarkawt said in a sorrowful voice.

A second victim, 25-year-old Mohammed Rasul, a shovel driver, had brought his shovel to help rescue teams save residents but was swept away by the muddy waters during the rescue efforts in Erbil’s Sebardan neighborhood, bringing his life to a sudden end.

One of Rasul's relatives told The New Region that he had left his wife and children to help people trapped in the floodwaters when the water level rose too high and swept him away.

“He turned back to rescue two people trapped in a car, but the currents grew stronger and hit them, so he climbed onto the vehicle. The two people he rescued managed to jump off to safety, while my cousin was unfortunately submerged,” he said.

It took hours to locate Rasul body.

“It took around three hours, from 7 until around 9:30 or 10 at night. The waters had dragged him to Hawleri Nwe,” he said.

Another relative, speaking to The New Region at the funeral, said he had called Rasul during the floods and urged him not to go outside.

“I told him, ‘Don’t come outside. It is too dangerous.’”

“He wouldn’t pick up the phone. Then I saw his car being swept away. I knew it was his car, but I didn’t know he was on top of it … They called me later and told me Mohammed had been swept away,” he said.

Countless homes were submerged overnight, leaving families devastated as muddy floodwaters destroyed their belongings and damaged their properties. Many lost personal possessions and sentimental items, while the level of the destruction left them facing a long and difficult recovery.

A day later, Erbil civil defense teams were still deployed across the province, pulling vehicles out of flooded areas, clearing mud-covered streets, and providing assistance to families whose homes had been submerged.

Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Masrour Barzani on Saturday held a phone call with Erbil Governor Omed Khoshnaw to follow up on the floods, directing local authorities “to take every necessary measure to come to the people’s aid and to protect the safety of citizens’ lives and property.”