Sudan flood death toll rises to 89

KHARTOUM, Sudan (AFP) — Floods in Sudan caused by more than a month of torrential rains have killed 89 people and injured 44, according to a new toll announced by the civil defence Monday.

A total of 37,249 homes and 150 public buildings have been destroyed by the flooding, Sudan’s civil defense organisation added in a statement.

Heavy rains usually fall in Sudan from June to October, and the country faces severe flooding every year.

“The Blue Nile has reached an all-time high since records began more than a century ago,” said the irrigation and water ministry.

The most recent report from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Sudan on Thursday said 381,770 people had so far been “affected” by the floods this year.

North Darfur in the country’s west and Sennar state in the south are among the hardest hit areas.

In 2019, floods affected 400,000 people throughout the season, according to an OCHA spokesperson.

© Agence France-Presse