As many as 650,000 people in Sudan have been affected by flash floods caused by heavy rains that hit the country in mid-July, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said, citing Sudan’s Humanitarian Aid Commission (HAC).
“HAC reported that 650,000 people had been affected by floods in 17 out of Sudan’s 18 states. More than 111,000 houses were either destroyed or damaged,” the UN agency said in a report.
Floods also destroyed 1,700 ha [4,200 acres] of agricultural land, 179 public facilities (schools, health centres, and government offices), 359 shops and warehouses, and killed 5,500 head of livestock, the source added.
More than 110,000 people have been affected by floods in the first week of September alone, the OCHA said, adding that nearly 43 percent of those 650,000 are in the states of Khartoum, North Darfur, and Sennar.
“The situation could deteriorate over the coming days, as heavy rains forecast in Ethiopia and several parts of Sudan will likely cause the further increase of water levels in the Blue Nile, leading to more flooding and destruction,” the report pointed out.
Since mid-July, Sudan has been experiencing an unusual level of heavy rains, which intensified over the last week prompting the government to declare a three-month state of emergency in the country.
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