(ERGO) – Flash floods have forced 900 families out of their homes in low-lying areas of Baadweyne, 180 km south east of Galkayo, after three consecutive days of heavy rainfall.
Ahmed Dahir Maalin, the area commissioner, told Radio Ergo that the families lost their homes and livestock and have fled to higher ground, where they need assistance.
“The flood waters exceeded a metre and a half and submerged about 500 houses, washing away people’s valuable possessions. Those who salvaged some items are helping others. No outside help has come in,” the commissioner said.
Abdullahi Mohamed Yaqub, a 56-year-old father of 11, told Radio Ergo he had no time to carry any food or utensils from the house, as his priority on the night the floods struck was to save his children from the rushing water. They are now camping out without any belongings.
“You can hear the cries of the children. They are naked and exposed to the mosquitoes. I can’t even go to the pharmacy for medicine. The families are grouping according to their identities and sharing whatever little they may have, be it sugar, flour, and so on,” he said.
Abdullahi’s three-bedroom house was totally submerged by the floodwaters and they cannot go back now. He lost the 30 goats he used to keep nearby for milk, which he sold for an income. He is worried how he will support his children, the youngest being just two years old.
Sahra Warsame Jimale, a mother of six, told Radio Ergo that she has been living out in the open since Friday 1st May. Neighbours have helped her with a mat to sleep on and a mosquito net for her children.
“I’ve tied the mosquito net to a tree on the outskirts of town and that’s where we sleep at night. I’m fasting, and I worry that donkeys playing around in the area may hurt my children. My youngest has a fever that hasn’t gone away since the night I rescued her from the waters,” she said, feeling lost and abandoned.
Sahra’s two-bedroom home is under water now. She lost the dozen goats she kept as a source of livelihood.
Baadweyne is located in a low-lying area in the southern end of Galmudug and is prone to flooding. The recent rainfall was heavier than usual. With so many people displaced, the commissioner Ahmed Dahir Maalin expressed his concern about the area’s future recovery.
