Heavy rain and floods affect at least 73,000 Sudanese, according to the UN’s emergency aid office (OCHA). Among them, over 21,000 have been displaced and 14,300 have had their homes destroyed.
– The humanitarian needs in the region are of epic proportions, says a statement from the UNCHR.
Among other things, aid does not reach the Zanzam refugee camp in North Darfur, where hundreds of thousands of people have sought refuge from the ongoing fighting in the region.
Famine
Large parts of Sudan have suffered from a humanitarian crisis since war broke out last year between the government army and their former allies in the RSF militia following a coup d’état in the country.
The worst violence has been in North Darfur and Darfur, where many people have also been displaced from their homes.
A UN report on hunger from the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) concluded in July that it was likely that parts of North Darfur, including the Zanzam refugee camp, were suffering from famine.
Around 320,000 people are believed to have been displaced from the town of El Fasher in North Darfur since April, according to the IPC, with at least 150,000 believed to have fled to the Zanzam camp. In just a few weeks, the population there has increased to more than half a million people.
The storm continues
Heavy rain has led to rising flood waters in parts of Sudan over the past week, and more storms are expected in the coming days.
Sudanese media reported on Wednesday that at least 34 people had lost their lives in the floodwaters in the northern city of Abu Hamad. The authorities have not made public how many people have died nationwide as a result of the floods.
A rescue team from the Sudanese Red Crescent has concluded that at least 3,000 homes have been destroyed by floods in Abu Hamad. According to the Darfur Network for Human Rights, there was heavy rain in the city for more than ten hours straight.
– All our houses have collapsed. Mine has been completely destroyed. We are sitting on the street with nowhere to go, says Umm Ayman Zakarya Adam, who lives in Abu Hamad, but has lost everything in the flood.
The Sudan Meteorological Institute on Wednesday issued a warning for heavy rain and thunderstorms until August 13, including in the capital Khartoum, Gezeira and North Darfur.
Fear of cholera outbreaks
– My father died in the flood, says a tearful Amna Hussein, who has sought refuge in a tent for internally displaced persons in Kassala, a state on the border with Eritrea.
The authorities in Kassala sent a plea to the international community on Friday for help to save flood victims. It said that “thousands of people have been affected by the floods which have destroyed many homes”.
Despite the fact that the authorities have sprayed insecticide at the refugee camps in Kassala, large swarms of flies are worsening the living conditions of the displaced people there.
A doctor in Kassala, speaking anonymously to AFP, tells of an increasing number of cases of diarrhea among children. Health workers say it could be a sign of an increase in cholera, an acute intestinal disease the authorities have struggled to overcome since the outbreak of war.
The disease has a very high mortality if it is not treated. Infection usually occurs through contaminated drinking water and food.
Increased risk
Every year between May and October, the water level peaks in the Nile, often combined with torrential rain, which constantly leads to flooding. In the past, such floods have destroyed both homes and infrastructure, and cost several people their lives both directly and as a consequence of contracting water-borne diseases.
The consequences are expected to be even worse this year after almost 16 months of war in Sudan, which has displaced millions of people to flood-prone areas.
In Wadi Halfa in northern Sudan near the border with Egypt, around 3,000 homes and health facilities have been seriously damaged in floods, according to local authorities.
– I am speaking to you from a hilltop where my family and dozens of others sought shelter last night after being completely surrounded by rising water, Wafe Halfa resident Mohammed Othman told AFP by phone on Monday.
– That’s all we can give
In the town of Aroma, around 40 kilometers east of Kassala, the floodwaters have risen over a number of roofs. Aid workers have warned that the rainy season could isolate entire regions of Sudan and make aid work even more difficult than it already is.
– Some have been displaced three or four times since the start of the conflict. They have lost their possessions, including food rations, says UNCHR spokesperson Olga Sarrado.
– They face significant challenges in obtaining clean water and access to sanitary facilities, which increases the risk of water-borne diseases, she says.
West of Kassala, white tents stretch over five square kilometers.
– These tents do not protect us from the rain, says Fathiya Mohammed, a displaced mother who tries in vain to light a fire despite the humidity.
Like others in her situation, Mohammed only expects to get one meal a day, which is given to her by voluntary aid workers.
– We know it’s not enough, but it’s all we can give, says a volunteer.
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2024-08-12 13:43:44