Heavy rainstorms and floods killed nine people across Turkey, the country's interior minister announced on Monday.

Several areas across Turkey were struck by heavy rainstorms and flooding on Sunday, the severity of the weather conditions causing a Turkish cargo ship to sink off the Black Sea coast in the country's northern province of Zonguldak. Of the 12 crew members on board, only one body was retrieved, with the rest remaining missing.

"I would like to express with regret that one of our crew members [on the cargo ship] and 9 of our citizens have died due to storms, floods, and heavy rains," Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya told journalists in Zonguldak on Monday.

Yerlikaya said four people died in Batman, one in Diyarbakir and three in Zonguldak, in addition to the cargo ship crew member.

Turkey's Disaster Management Authority (AFAD) announced on X on Sunday night that three ships were "affected by the storm" and a total of 25 people were rescued from two of them, while efforts to rescue the missing crew members of the third ship, which sunk in Zonguldak, continue.

Turkey is no stranger to flooding. In September two people were killed in floods that hit the streets of Istanbul following several hours of heavy rainfall.

In March, a series of devastating floods hit Sanliurfa and Adiyaman provinces killing 21 people.

At least 21 people have died in the Dominican Republic after heavy rain over the weekend which displaced thousands of residents, officials say.

An investigation has been launched after nine people died when torrential rain caused a highway tunnel wall to collapse in the capital Santo Domingo.

More than 13,000 people were evacuated to secure areas after heavy downpours

The Emergency Operations Center (COE) said rain caused flooded homes, power cuts and damaged bridges and roads.

Three children were among those killed.

Dominican President Luis Abinader called it the "largest rainfall event ever" in the country's history, following torrential storms over the past 48 hours.

The Caribbean nation has been battered by torrential rainfall with footage on social media showing torrents of water flowing through streets and washing away vehicles.

More than 2,500 people were rescued and more than 2,600 homes affected by the storm, the COE said.

It added that 45 communities were without communication as of Sunday afternoon.

The rainfall, which resulted from a tropical depression, is expected to continue across parts of the country into Monday, the US embassy said.

A majority of the nation's 32 provinces remain under red and yellow weather alerts, it added.

President Abinader said classes have been suspended until Wednesday "in order to evaluate the schools that may have been affected" and "guarantee the safety of our young people".

He posted on X, formerly Twitter, that he was "deeply shocked by the loss of life due to the heavy rains" and offered "unconditional support to all those affected by this emergency".

Four of those killed were US nationals, and three were from neighbouring Haiti, AFP news agency reported.