Somalia’s flooding disaster: Nearly 100 fatalities
The death toll from the devastating floods caused by heavy rainfall in Somalia rose to 96, according to the state news agency SONNA on Saturday.
SONNA reported on X that the death toll from the floods in Somalia has risen to 96, which was confirmed by Mahamuud Moallim, the head of the country’s disaster management agency.
Similar to the rest of the East and Horn of Africa, Somalia has been relentlessly struck by heavy rains that started in October.
These rains are the result of the El Niño and Indian Ocean Dipole weather patterns. Both of these are climatic phenomena influence the ocean surface temperature and lead to higher than average rainfall.
Described as the most severe in decades, the flooding has resulted in the displacement of approximately 700,000 individuals, as reported by the United Nations.
Moreover, the intense rains have triggered extensive flooding across the country, leading to further displacement and intensifying an existing humanitarian crisis brought on by years of insurgency.
According to the Kenyan Red Cross, the floods in neighboring Kenya have so far killed 76 people.
The flooding has also caused widespread displacement, damaged roads and bridges, and left many people without shelter, food, and clean water, according to the humanitarian organisation Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF).
