The death toll from the torrential rains that hit eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) last Thursday has risen to at least 402, local authorities confirmed to EFE on Monday.
heavy rainfall triggered flash floods, floods and landslides in Kalehe territorylocated in the province of South Kivu.
Rivers burst their banks and flash floods swept away most of the buildings in Bushushu and Nyamukubi villages, causing enormous loss of life.
“We just woke up and began the excavations that we are carrying out with the support of our friends from the Red Cross and various volunteers,” Kalehe administrator Thomas Bakenga told EFE by phone.
“Two bodies have just been found, taken from the rubble and swallowed by the mud, which gives us a provisional balance of 402 bodies”Bakenga said.
According to this local authority, this Sunday afternoon the figure of 400 deaths was reached, after the discovery of 42 bodies floating in Lake Kivu, on the border with Rwanda.
”We are in dire need of help from the authorities and the people. This disaster is really serious”, stressed the administrator.
Delphin Birimbi, a civilian leader from Kalehe, indicated that he understood that thousands of people were still missing. He told the AP that some medics had arrived to treat the injured, but communities were asking for more emergency help.
Destruction caused by flooding made relief efforts difficult as two main roads were impassable.
Faced with this tragedy, the Congolese government decreed today, Monday, as a day of national mourning in memory of the victims, some of whom perished in the villages of Bushushsu, Nyamukubi and Chavondo, which continue to be the most affected by the natural disaster.
He president of the DRC, Félix Tshisekedi, expressed last Friday his “Sincere condolences to the victims of the torrential rains that caused devastating havoc”through the social network Twitter.
The Congolese government declared Monday a day of national mourning, and flags will fly at half-mast in memory of the victims.
Heavy rains in recent days have caused suffering for thousands of people in East Africa, including parts of Uganda and Kenya.
During the night of May 2-3, at least 131 people were also killed by heavy rains in neighboring Rwanda.as confirmed by the authorities.
The soil type of eastern DRC and Rwanda, highly vulnerable to erosion, is easily weakened by factors such as torrential rains, sometimes leading to such catastrophes.
(with information from EFE and AP)
Keep reading:
Corn hidden in coffins: the strategy with which smugglers take advantage of the shortage in the Congo
The death toll from torrential rains in the capital of Congo rose to 165
After the Ebola outbreak in the Congo, vaccination began in the Ivory Coast due to the appearance of a case
Source-www.infobae.com