Sunday May 20, 2018
By Harun Maruf
AWDAL — At least 22 people have been killed, and others are still missing
after heavy rains from tropical cyclone hit the Horn of Africa.
At least 15 were killed in Awdal region in the self-declared republic of
Somaliland, according to regional governor Abdirahman Ahmed Ali, while
another person was killed in the town of Berbera in Sahil region.
Ali said the report is still preliminary and the death toll could
rise as they try to reach remote areas of the region affected by the
rains.
Most of the victims are believed to be swept away by the flash floods, residents said.
Residents in Baki town of Awdal region say they recorded four deaths,
three of them swept away by floods while the fourth person died after a
house collapsed.
Mohamed Aw Ahmed Ateye is the head of the district council in Baki
town. "There is a huge loss of lives and destruction of properties,” he
told VOA Somali.
Ateye reported the collapse of 41 homes in the town, while another 30
homes were destroyed in Harirad town. He also said 140 farms were
destroyed.
“The floods destroyed the crop, farm equipment and bridges were swept away after 17 hours of rains,” he said.
In Mogadishu, officials confirmed the death of at least six people and more than 300 homes are underwater in the capital.
According to United Nations, heavy rains continue to fall across
Somalia and the Ethiopian highlands. It says 772,500 people have been
affected by flooding in Somalia with more than 229,000 displaced.
Hashim Omar Goth contributed to this report from Awdal.