According to African Union Mission to Somalia (AMISOM), the total number of people displaced by the recent flooding in Somalia has now risen to 21,000.
The flooding struck in Beletweyne, in the Hiiraan region, South-central of Somalia, after the River Shabelle burst its banks in late October 2014.
Further heavy rainfall over the last 2 weeks has forced thousands more to leave their homes for higher ground. The affected families have settled in temporary shelters at a camp close to the AMISOM base camp, North Eastern Beletweyne.
Major Ali Hussein, an AMISON spokesman said
“We are looking at how we can evacuate them or offer medication, but they need much more than that. On the side of the food and so on, they are being provided with clean water by the use of water tankers but they need food and medicines urgently. There is possibility of water borne diseases outbreak, and they don’t have sanitation facilities”
Aid agencies have warned that the floods are likely to worsen the already fragile food security situation, with at least 1 million people in urgent need of humanitarian assistance across Somalia. A statement by the Food Agriculture Organization released last week indicates that the floods have left large areas with crops submerged, further exposing the population to food insecurity.
