More than 38,000 people affected by floods in Sudan

Heavy annual rains between May and October often lead to fatalities and destruction of property

A flooded street in Sudan's capital, Khartoum, on August 13, 2022. AFP

The UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs (Ocha) in Sudan on Monday estimated that about 38,000 people in Sudan had been affected by rains and floods since the start of the rainy season.

About 314,500 people were affected in Sudan during the rainy season of 2021, according to Ocha.

Flooding caused by rains in Sudan have killed at least 52 people and inundated more than 8,170 homes since the rainy season started, state media and police official said at the weekend.

Heavy rains usually fall in Sudan between May and October, and the country faces the risk of severe flooding every year, which can wreck properties and infrastructure and ruin crops.

"A total of 52 people have been killed and 25 others [injured by] torrential rains and floods since the beginning of the fall season," Suna reported, quoting Abdel Jalil Abdelreheem, spokesman for Sudan's National Council for Civil Defence (NCCD).

Mr Abdelreheem said 5,345 houses in Sudan had been destroyed and 2,862 damaged. Other public facilities, shops, and agricultural lands were also damaged.

Children cross flooded fields near Malualkon in Bahr el Ghazal state, South Sudan, during the rainy season in 2021. AP Photo

North and South Kordofan states, River Nile state, and South Darfur were among the most affected in Sudan, he said.

Sudan’s military leader, Gen Abdel Fattah Al Burhan inspected the damages on Sunday in the flood-affected areas in River Nile State, including Al-Mikaylab and Kadabas in Barber locality, according to state news agency Suna.

Gen Al Burhan directed the federal and state authorities to provide the requested assistance.

Residents of Makaylab village in the River Nile province are trapped by floodwater.

Residents believe that the floodwater covering the area is affecting their health, leaving many sick with no access to no medical services.

Nineteen fatalities have been recorded in North Kordofan province, followed by Nile River province, which reported seven deaths, said Brig Gen Abdelreheem, spokesman for the NCCD.

The western Darfur region, which has five provinces, reported 16 deaths, he said.

He did not say when the first causality occurred.

Sudan’s rainy season usually starts in June and lasts until September, with floods peaking in August and September.

Brig Gen Abdelreheem said at least 25 people had been injured so far this year, according to the country’s state-run Suna news agency.

The flooding and heavy rainfall inundated 16 government facilities, about 40 shops and damaged at least 540 feddans (17 hectares) of agricultural land, Brig Gen Abdelreheem said.

The UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs says an estimated 38,000 people have been affected by heavy rainfall across the East African country since May.

Last year, flooding and heavy rains killed more than 80 people and swamped tens of thousands of houses throughout the country.

In 2020, authorities declared Sudan a natural disaster area and imposed a three-month state of emergency in the country after flooding and heavy rain killed about 100 people and swamped more than 100,000 houses.