Heavy rainfall in central Darfur caused flash floods in Umm Ger Namali in Wadi Salih locality, Central Darfur on Wednesday 21st August.
The floods resulted in the deaths of 5 people, with 17 others injured. Livestock were also killed in the deluge. The floods destroyed as many as 50 homes and other buildings, including shops, leaving hundreds homeless. The precarious situation in Darfur makes it extremely difficult for aid agencies to offer relief. According to locals who spoke to Sudan’s Radio Dabanga, those affected live now in the open, without shelter or food.
The heavy rainfall was accompanied by storms and lightning strikes, which injured 5 people at Nertiti camp in Central Darfur, a relief camp for those already displaced on Tuesday 20th August.
Sudan’s Radio Dabanga also reported that:
The Sudanese Red Crescent announced that 765 families have been affected by rain and floods in El Kuma locality in North Darfur. Some 53 houses and 10 classrooms were destroyed, and Kuma town market was flooded.
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Meanwhile the World Health Organisation (WHO) has put the number of people affected by the recent Sudan flood crisis at 320,000. WHO said 48 people had died in the floods, and 70 were injured. Flooding has caused damage to homes and other properties in 14 different states.
The heavy rainfall first in this recent spate of flood disasters first began in early August. The floods continued and soon hit the capital, Khartoum, and went on to affect 200,000 people across the whole of Sudan.
Relief workers are facing increasing problems in dealing with the victims of the floods. Security in some areas of Sudan is of major concern, especially to foreign aid workers. But there is also a fear of spread of disease in the wake of flooding.
According to WHO:
Rising malaria rates and the collapse of some 52,856 emergency latrines, along with the growing swarms of flies and mosquitoes, are posing a significant public health threat in affected areas.
Aid for Flood Victims
Today OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID) has approved a US$400,000 grant in humanitarian aid to assist families in the Sudan affected by severe flooding that has destroyed homes and public infrastructure.
