A rock formation collapsed near the entrance to an open-air museum in Cappadocia on Thursday, killing two people and injuring five. Nevşehir provincial Governor Hüseyin Kök said the victims' bodies had been recovered from under the rubble as crews kept searching the site.
The collapse happened near Göreme at about 15:15 local time, or 12:15 GMT. Akın Gürlek said that "according to initial assessments, two individuals have lost their lives in the incident, and five others have been injured".
Göreme museum site
The rock spire was one of the fairy chimneys that draw tourists to Cappadocia. Those tall, cone-shaped formations were created by volcanic activity, and the open-air museum in Göreme is a place visitors go to see them up close.
Local media reported that heavy rain could have triggered the collapse, but the cause was not immediately known. That leaves weather as a possible trigger rather than a settled explanation, and it keeps attention on whether the formation failed from water damage, erosion, or some other stress.
Hüseyin Kök on the rubble
Kök's account and Gürlek's later statement pointed to the same immediate outcome: the bodies had been recovered, while the search and rescue operation continued at the site. Gürlek also warned there could be other potential victims still trapped, which meant crews were still working through the rubble rather than treating the scene as clear.
Cappadocia attracts tourists from around the world, and the collapse at a popular site in Nevşehir cut directly into that flow of visitors. For anyone planning to visit the museum area, the practical result is that the scene remains an active rescue location, with access and safety conditions shaped by what crews find under the debris.
