Cappadocia fairy chimney collapses in Goreme: 3 dead, 5 injured after heavy rain

Three people were killed and five injured when a rock spire, one of Cappadocia's famous "fairy chimneys", collapsed in Goreme, Turkiye, on Thursday 29 October 2026, Dawn reported, citing Nevsehir Governor Huseyin Kok. The spire fell at 3:15pm local time (5:15pm PKT) near the Goreme open-air museum and a car park.

What happened

• Cause: a landslide set off by heavy rain brought the cone-shaped volcanic formation down, officials said.
• Casualties: Justice Minister Akin Gurlek first reported two dead on X; rescuers then pulled a third body from the rubble. Five people were hurt.
• Who: the nationalities of the dead were not immediately known.
• Rescue: search teams and excavators kept working into the night under floodlights in case anyone else was trapped. Witnesses described a loud crash and a large cloud of dust.
• Closure: the area around the collapse was closed to the public.

Cappadocia is a UNESCO World Heritage site, known for its rock-cut churches, cave hotels and hot-air balloon flights over the fairy chimneys. About 4.5 million domestic and foreign tourists visited in 2025. Turkiye's culture and tourism ministry has been running restoration work to protect the formations; a rockfall in 2024 hurt no one.

If you are travelling to Turkiye

Turkiye is one of the most popular holiday and honeymoon destinations for Pakistani families, and Cappadocia is on most tour packages. If you are booked for the coming days:

1. Check with your hotel or tour operator whether the Goreme open-air museum area and nearby trails are open.
2. Avoid walking under or climbing the rock formations after heavy rain, when the soft volcanic rock is most likely to give way.
3. Keep the Pakistan Embassy in Ankara's contact details saved, and register your trip with your travel agent.
4. Budget the trip in rupees with our currency converter, and check renewal fees with our passport fee calculator if yours is close to expiry.

We will update this story if Pakistani nationals are reported among the victims.