NIAMEY, Niger (AFP) – Powerful rains that have swept the arid state of Niger since June have left 75 dead and affected 108,000 people, the government said on Tuesday. The previous toll issued by the Civil Protection Agency on August 14 was 32 dead and nearly 67,000 affected. The worst-hit regions are Maradi in the central south, Zinder in the central east, and Tillaberi and Tahoua in the west. The landlocked Sahel state’s annual rainy […]
Tag: flood
After ‘doomsday’ floods, Sudanese fear worse to come
MAKAYLAB, Sudan (AFP) — In the Sudanese village of Makaylab, Mohamed Tigani picked through the pile of rubble that was once his mud-brick home, after torrential rains sparked heavy floods that swept it away. “It was like doomsday,” said Tigani, 53, from Makaylab in Sudan’s River Nile state, some 400 kilometers (250 miles) north of the capital Khartoum. “We have not seen rains and floods like that in this area for years,” he said, scouring […]
Torrential rain, flooding in Seoul kill seven
SEOUL, South Korea (AFP) — Subway stations and major roads were underwater in the South Korean capital Seoul after record-breaking rains caused severe flooding, with at least seven people dead and seven more missing, officials said Tuesday. Dramatic images shared on social media late Monday showed people wading through waist-deep water, metro stations overflowing, and cars half-submerged in Seoul’s posh Gangnam district after torrential rain battered the city. The downpour that began Monday is the […]
26 more dead in India monsoon fury, waters recede in Bangladesh
At least 26 more people have died in monsoon flooding and lightning strikes in India, as millions remained marooned in the country and neighbouring Bangladesh, authorities said Monday. Floods are a regular menace in India and Bangladesh, but experts say climate change is increasing their frequency, ferocity and unpredictability for the two countries’ 1.6 billion people. In India‘s northeastern state of Assam, three people were killed in landslides while six others died in flood waters, […]
Residents evacuate as floods threaten Sydney suburbs
SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) — Heavy rain triggered evacuation orders in Sydney on Thursday, as swollen rivers threatened homes and flooded roads in the latest wild weather to lash Australia’s east. Residents in several suburbs of Sydney’s south and southwest were told to leave for safety as fast-flowing rivers rose. “We have seen exceptionally sharp, short bursts of rain that have created significant flash flooding events around parts of the Illawarra,” New South Wales State Emergency […]
Australia’s flood-ravaged east braces for more storms
SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) — Thousands of people across eastern Australia have been told to leave their homes as storms bear down on cities and towns still recovering from record deadly flooding just weeks ago. Multiple evacuation orders were issued for the town of Lismore, which was devastated last month when record-high 14.3-meter (47 feet) floodwaters engulfed homes, swept away cars, and stranded locals on the roofs of their homes. Hundreds of people had to be […]
Australia floods force tens of thousands to evacuate
SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) – Tens of thousands of Sydney residents have been told to evacuate their homes as severe storms and flash flooding inundated swathes of Australia’s largest city Tuesday. The national weather bureau warned of “a tough 48 hours ahead” for the city, with 60,000 people subject to evacuation orders and warnings across the affected areas, according to emergency services. The death toll from a week of what officials have called “unprecedented” floods across […]
Australians flee floods as toll rises to 12, Sydney on alert
SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) — Floodwaters crashed into more towns on Australia’s east coast as a deadly storm front barrelled south on Wednesday towards Sydney, where the main dam began to spill water. The death toll rose to 12 in a week-long disaster that has washed cars from roads and forced tens of thousands of people to evacuate their homes as waters lapped at balconies and roofs. “This is terrible. This is terrible. One life lost […]
18 dead in storms near Brazil’s Rio de Janeiro: firefighters
RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (AFP) — Landslides and flooding triggered by heavy rainfall killed at least 18 people Tuesday in a tourist town in the hills above Rio de Janeiro, Brazilian firefighters said. “So far, 18 deaths caused by landslides and floods have been confirmed” in recent hours, the Rio de Janeiro Fire Department said in a statement. It said more than 180 firefighters and other rescue workers were at the scene in the picturesque […]
Cyclone Batsirai kills six, displaces tens of thousands in Madagascar
by Adele Dhayer Cyclone Batsirai killed at least six people and displaced nearly 48,000 when it struck Madagascar overnight, the national disaster management agency said on Sunday. Cyclone Batsirai weakened overnight but not before wreaking havoc in the poor Indian Ocean island nation which is still reeling from a deadly tropical storm earlier this year. The eastern district of Mananjary was lashed with heavy rains and wind before the cyclone made landfall, forcing local residents […]
Cyclone Batsirai closes in on eastern Madagascar
As powerful Cyclone Batsirai closed in on eastern Madagascar on Saturday people sought shelter in more secure concrete buildings while others reinforced their roofs with large sandbags. Batsirai is expected to lash the eastern parts of the cyclone-prone Indian ocean island with powerful winds and torrential rains on Saturday. The Meteo-France weather service warned of winds of up to 260 kilometres per hour (162 miles per hour) and waves as high as 15 metres (50 […]
22 dead, dozens injured as flooding hits Ecuador capital
by Santiago PIEDRA SILVA QUITO, Ecuador (AFP) — The heaviest flooding to hit Ecuador in two decades has killed at least 22 people in Quito, inundating homes, swamping cars and sweeping away athletes and spectators on a sports field, officials said Tuesday. Twenty people are missing and 47 injured, Ecuador’s SNGRE emergency service said on Twitter. Video footage showed torrents of water carrying stones, mud and debris down streets in the Ecuadoran capital, as rescuers […]





