A remote village where more than half the population are deaf and non-verbal is baffling medics and officials in Turkey.
Isolated Gokova, nearly 450 miles from Istanbul with just 120 villagers, has such profound disability problems that signing has become the standard language.
Some have blamed the bizarre high deafness rate on inbreeding in a region where newcomers are a rarity.
But others say locals have been slowly poisoned by generations of water pollution.
Heavy metals like iron and arsenic and chemical contamination from industrial waste have been linked to deafness.
Local mayor Eyup Tozn said: “I think this is not caused by inter-marriage, but because of unhealthy water sources.
“We’ve learned to rely on sign language as a community but any outsiders have trouble communicating.”
And villager Sati Tozun added: “I have four children with disabilities and one of them has three children, all deaf and mute.
“My sister-in-law has children with disabilities. This village is completely disabled.”
And neighbour Ali Tuzun, who has no hearing loss, added: “Most of this community is disabled. It’s hard for them to get along.
“They get help from the government, but they’re not showing the problem enough interest. “
To find out more about the author, editor or agency that supplied this story – please click below. Story By: Clive Goodman, Sub-Editor: Simona Kitanovska, Agency: Newsflash
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