ISTANBUL

Syrian emergency crews rescued 25 people after floodwaters trapped them in rural areas of Syria’s central Homs province as heavy rain swelled rivers and triggered flash flooding, the emergency and disaster management minister said Tuesday.

Raed Saleh said in a post on the US social media company X that civil defense teams rescued a second family of 13, most of them women and children, who were stranded on the roof of their home after a river overflowed in the village of Um Jame’ in the Tal Kalakh area of the western Homs countryside.

With that operation, the number of civilians rescued overnight rose to 25, most of them women and children, following a rapid response and sustained efforts.

No other families remained trapped in the area, Saleh said.

He added that civil defense teams will remain on full, around-the-clock readiness to protect lives and respond to emergencies.

On Monday, the Syrian Civil Defense said it rescued 12 people -- three children, seven women and two elderly men -- from another home in the same village after floodwaters surrounded the building.

Separately, Alikhbariya TV said emergency teams in Idlib province responded to multiple calls linked to heavy rainfall, including draining stormwater, clearing channels in and around Idlib city, and pumping water from several displacement camps.

Teams also opened drainage channels in the city of Harem after flash floods formed, placed warning signs and towed a stranded vehicle in Saraqib, the channel said.

Syrian media reported Monday that a house collapsed due to heavy rain in the village of Maghar al-Hammam in the southern Idlib countryside, without causing casualties.

Syria has seen heavy rain and snowfall, prompting authorities to urge residents to exercise caution and avoid flood channels and valleys.