Eight people including a 12-year old boy have reportedly died of dehydration as they travelled out of Gedo seeking water and food.
Aar Mohamed, the commissioner of Gerilley village in Gedo, told Radio Ergo that those who died were drought-stricken pastoralists from his village, who had trekked to Middle Juba in search of water and pasture for their livestock.
He said they died on their way back to Gerilley after failing to find water.
Another 28 people, who were also severely weak and on the verge of death, were rescued by local pastoralists along the way.
“There has been ravagingdrought in our village for the past three years, so herders were moving to areas they thought they could get water for themselves and their livestock as well,” Aar Mohamed said.
One of the survivors, Ahmed Mohamed, now back in Gerilley,said they were rescued in a remote area 130 km from the village.
“We were all so weak and desperate when some locals came to our help and gave us water,” he said.
Ali Ibrahim, another survivor, said seven herders with their livestock were missing. A team had been sent to look for them.
Gedo and Middle Juba are two of Somalia’s worst-hit regions in the drought.
