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| Residents walk through flooded streets in Beledweyne |
More than
9,000 people have been displaced following floods in Beledweyne town of Hiiraan
region after River burst its banks.
Families
in Hawo-tako, Koshin and Bundaweyn suburbs have been forced to seek shelter on
higher ground in the outskirt of Beledweyne town after their houses were
submerged and valuables washed away
Speaking
to the media Abdullahi Ahmed Moalim, the governor of Hiiraan region said
various riverine villages were washed away after the river flooded following
the heavy downpour.
He said
that about 9,000 residents in Beledweyne had moved to El-Jalle village for fear
of being carried away by the floodwaters.
The governor warned the residents to seek high
ground areas as looming floods flashed from Ethiopian Highland and Hills in the
region are imminent.
Moalim
called on NGO and well-wishers to help the victims as they are spending their
nights without shelter and the risk of flood-related diseases.
In a
report, UN Office for the coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said the river
level was at 7.75 meters, which is 0.45 meters above high flood risk level
leading the displacement of more than 500 people from Hilaac, Kutimbo and
Donsubagle who moved with some moving with their possessions, including
livestock to safer areas.
Beledweyne Airport has been unserviceable for extended
periods over the course of the last week due to inundation by rain waters,
which hampers the delivery of supplies
UN also
said more than 7,000 people in Jowhar town have also moved to Hanti-Wadag
village fearing floods from the river which was filled to the brim with
frenzied heavy flushing water.
Source: Hiiraan
Online
