Death toll from floods in Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia rises to 130
Death toll from floods in Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia rises to 130
At least 130 people have died in Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia following heavy rains that triggered what aid agencies describe as flooding seen only once every 100 years.
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The National Disaster Management Agency said 51 people have been killed across the country and a half-million displaced since the rains started in October.
Parts of the country remained cut off and inaccessible after roads and bridges were washed away, marooning thousands of residents.
Humanitarian group Save the Children said the town of Beledweyne in central Somalia was completely submerged after the Shabelle River burst its banks, forcing an estimated 250,000 people, or 90% of the population, out of their homes.
A warmer atmosphere because of human-caused climate change can also hold more water, making downpours heavier.
Tana River County Commissioner Mohammed Noor said the situation also was desperate in his region, where the floods have displaced about 7,000 households.
Scientists say climate change has made weather extremes -- from heat to drought, to floods -- worse around the world, including in the Horn of Africa, where just a few months ago, parts of Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia and South Sudan experienced the worst drought in 40 years following five failed rainy seasons.
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