New floods in Afghanistan kill at least 66 people
Afghanistan is in the grip of a series of violent and very deadly rainfall. Floods left 66 dead on Saturday evening in the province of Faryab, in the north of the country, a spokesperson for the governorate announced on Sunday, May 19. “Five people were injured, eight are missing and more than 1,500 homes were damaged”he clarified.
In the province of Ghor, in the west of the country, heavy rains on Friday left 55 dead, according to an official provisional report, while more than 3,000 houses were destroyed. The province of Baghlan, in the North, experienced extremely devastating flash floods on May 10, leaving at least 300 people dead and many missing.
The World Health Organization (WHO) explained that the malfunction of the internet still prevented us from knowing the true situation in certain very isolated villages. “Humanitarian organizations continue to face major problems accessing affected areas due to widespread damage to infrastructure, including roads and bridges”said the WHO.
Afghanistan, a country very exposed to climate change, is experiencing an abnormally rainy spring, after an exceptionally dry winter. The country had already suffered massive and deadly floods in mid-April. “With these erratic weather situations, there has been disaster after disaster, which has plunged the villagers into extreme poverty”, Timothy Anderson, in charge of Afghanistan at the World Food Program, said on Tuesday. Around 80% of Afghanistan’s 40 million people depend on agriculture for their survival.
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