At least 7 dead after heavy rains overwhelm drainage system in Somalia

4 hours ago 2

Drought and coercion grip desolate Somalia

Drought and coercion grip desolate Somalia 02:58

At slightest 7 radical person died and large roads were chopped disconnected aft dense rains led to flooding successful Somalia's capital, Mogadishu, connected Friday nighttime owed to an overwhelmed drainage strategy and a increasing municipality population.

The determination medication spokesperson, Abdinasir Hirsi Idle, told The Associated Press connected Saturday that rescue efforts were ongoing.

"The decease toll could emergence due to the fact that the rains were dense and lasted for respective hours, causing 9 houses to illness crossed antithetic neighborhoods, and astatine slightest six large roads to endure terrible damage," helium said.

Somalia has successful the past suffered extreme clime shocks that see prolonged adust seasons that person caused drought and dense rains that person resulted successful floods.

Friday's rains went connected for astir 8 hours, leaving waist-high waters successful neighborhoods wherever immoderate residents were trapped and others were forced to determination to higher ground.

A resident, Mohamed Hassan, told the AP that immoderate older radical were inactive trapped.

"We spent the nighttime connected rooftops, shivering from the cold, and I haven't adjacent had breakfast," helium said.

Floodwaters besides damaged cardinal infrastructure, halting nationalist transport and temporarily disrupting operations astatine the main airport, Aden Abdulle International Airport. Officials aboriginal confirmed flights had resumed operations.

The Somali Disaster Management Agency has not yet released an authoritative decease toll but said appraisal was underway to find the grade of the damage.

The country's vigor and h2o ministry successful a connection connected Saturday said, "a important magnitude of rainfall, exceeding 115 mm, was recorded successful implicit 8 consecutive hours" and warned of flash floods successful different regions extracurricular the capital.