At least seven people have been killed and major roads have been cut off after heavy rain led to flooding in Mogadishu, the capital of Somali.
Regional administration spokesman Abdynasir Hirsi Idol said rescue operations continued on Saturday.
“The heavy rain and lasted for several hours could raise the death toll, nine homes have collapsed in different areas and at least six major roads have suffered severe damage,” he said.
Somalia has been subject to extreme climate shocks in the past. This includes long dry seasons that have caused droughts and heavy rain and flooding.
The rain lasted about eight hours on Friday, leaving some high-rising water in a neighborhood where some residents were trapped and others were forced to move to the high altitudes.
Resident Mohamed Hassan told The Associated Press that some seniors are still locked up.
“We spent the night on the rooftop and shaking from the cold, but I didn’t even have breakfast,” he said.
The floods also damaged major infrastructure, shut down public transport and temporarily disrupt operations at Maine Aden Abdul Airport. Authorities later confirmed that flights had resumed.
The Somali Disaster Management Agency has not yet released its official death toll, but said an assessment is underway to determine the extent of the damage.
The country’s Ministry of Energy and Water Resources said in a statement on Saturday that “significant amounts of rainfall exceeding 115mm have been recorded for more than eight hours,” warning of flash flooding in areas outside the capital.
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