Cars are destroyed during a flood in Varna, Bulgaria. [Photo/IC]

Heavy rain in Bulgaria's Black Sea city of Varna on Thursday afternoon flooded the town, 12 people were found dead and 4 people are reported missing. The situation is most serious in the district of Asparuhovo, where, according to reports, the floodwaters obliterated the district and carried along and upturned hundreds of cars.

According to the city councillor Radoslav Koev, Asparuhovo was hit by a flash flood from the ridge above the district. The water flooded homes and public buildings, and there are streets and homes swamped in mud. "Most likely there are drowned people," Koev said. The city boulevards and streets have been turned into rivers and the pedestrian underpasses are completely flooded. Due to the storm, the entire sections of Varna have no electricity, and landlines and cell phones in certain areas are out of order. Public transport is also seriously disrupted.

Rainstorms, floods plunge China into emergency response	Typhoon Hagibis forces 16,000 to evacuate Shantou	World Refugee Day special: a glimpse of refugees' life