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ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Torrential rains and flash floods have caused severe damage to Chamchamal’s only public library, destroying rare and historical books that had been preserved for nearly five decades.
“Due to yesterday’s natural disaster and massive floods, our library has suffered huge damage,” said Hersh Abdulrahman, head of the Chamchamal Public Library. “The books were of great importance - historical, scientific, and medical works that are extremely rare and very difficult to obtain.”
Established in 1976, the library has long served as a vital educational hub for the district. It provides resources to local schools and universities and has supplied materials to academic institutions in Duhok, Halabja, and Zakho.
“What worries us most is that a number of very valuable books are destroyed, books that have been here since the year the library was built,” Abdulrahman said. “In just one hour, the library was reduced to zero. It is beyond our capacity to restore it to its original state.”
He described the library as “very rich,” noting its significant collection of scientific material.
The destruction comes as Chamchamal is among the hardest-hit areas in the Kurdistan Region following two days of heavy rainfall and severe flooding.
According to district mayor Ramk Ramazan, more than 500 homes and 100 businesses have been damaged. Five government offices - including the property registrar, passport, culture, police, and district administration departments - were also flooded.
During a press conference on Wednesday, Kurdistan Region Deputy Prime Minister Qubad Talabani announced the formation of a committee to raise funds for flood victims, urging philanthropists, business leaders, and the public to contribute. He stressed that providing clean drinking water is an immediate priority after the town lost access to safe supplies.
“Today we are all Chamchamali, and we must face this incident,” Talabani said.
The Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) water resources ministry said dams across the Region have begun storing significant amounts of water following the recent heavy rains.
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