Flash floods displace 9,000 families in Sudan

16 August 2018

Flash flooding and heavy rain has caused widespread destruction in Sudan, with reports that 23 people have been killed, 61 injured and almost 9,000 families displaced.

Sudan has been experiencing heavy rains over the past three weeks, in what is an unusually wet rainy season.

The minister of planning in the River Nile state, Mohamed Abdelwahid, said that over 600 houses had either partially or fully collapsed, sweeping away 1,580 acres of agricultural land and destroying a school.

The rain has caused widespread infrastructural damage to key roads, bridges and local amenities.

There are concerns that disease and epidemics could spread through residential areas as flood waters contain cyanide and mercury from local mines.

The Sudanese Meteorological Authority and Ministry of Water Resources and Humanitarian Aid Commission (HAC)’s have warned that heavy rain is expected to continue across eastern Sudan as well as the Butana plains, including River Nile, the Red Sea state as well as Central and Western Darfur states.

There are also concerns that the Blue Nile river and River Nile will rise and flooding, causing further displacements in populations along the riverine.

The HAC activated a Flood Task Force in late June to launch a four month contingency plan for Sudan in the case of flooding.

The Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) previously warned that East Africa is likely to experience continued flooding throughout the remainder of 2018, owing to above average rainfall.

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Image credit: Dabanga