Floods displaced hundreds of people and destroyed at least 5,000 hectares of farmland in Somalia’s Middle Shabelle region around Jowhar, the regional capital, when the Shabelle river burst its banks last week, local officials said on Wednesday, according to IRIN.
Some of the villagers were about to harvest when the river broke its banks. Some families have lost everything, local sources say.
Heavy rainfall in neighbouring Ethiopia has caused the rivers downstream in Somalia to swell, causing the flooding.
The worst affected are the nearby villages of Bardhere, Mangay and Tuugarey. All three villages are completely cut off.
The emergency committee is trying to build up the embankment of the river with sandbags to prevent more flooding.
The situation was exacerbated by the fact that since the collapse of the Somali government in 1991, no one has been able to de-silt the riverbed or manage the sluice gates on the rivers or adjoining canals.
Farmers has also cut into river embankments to irrigate their land, which contributes to the seasonal flooding.
The UN World Food Programme tells IRIN that it is monitoring the situation closely, and is ready with stocks of food near the area.
Kilde: www.irinnews.org
