Watu 150,000 waathirika na mafuriko ya mvua zinazonyesha nchini Sudani - UN

 

A Sudanese woman sits with her child next to her house in a flooded street on the outskirts of the capital Khartoum on August 10, 2013.

The United Nations says around 150,000 Sudanese people have been affected by heavy rains and flooding in August.

The UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said on Monday that more than half of the victims are in the area around the capital, Khartoum.

    “More rains are expected in the coming days and the estimated number of affected people is likely to rise further as rains continue and as more information becomes available,” OCHA said in a press release.

OCHA's latest estimate comes after downpours on Friday night and is based on data provided by the Sudanese Red Crescent Society and other agencies.

Heavy rains and flash floods in the African country started on August 1 and at first affected almost 100,000 people in several states.

On Sunday, official Radio Omdurman reported that 36 people in Nile state north of the capital died in the flooding. However, the report did not mention over what time period the fatalities took place.

The UN had earlier said that downpours and flash floods in Khartoum and other parts of Sudan left 11 people dead in August.

A volunteer youth group, Nafeer, said on Monday it had discovered 150 families “trapped” in the al-Nizeila area on the outskirts of Khartoum.

The group had reported that families in some flooded regions do not have access to clean water and the unsafe tank water they have been surviving on “is sold at double the regular price.”

In 2012, water surges in rural areas of Sudan between June and October affected about 270,000 people and damaged over 36,000 homes.

MR/SS