World Vision appeals for flood aid

The provincial government of Namibe in southern Angola has appealed to the international community and non-governmental organisations operating in Angola to help victims of new flooding which has left more than 7,000 families homeless and in desperate need of food, shelter and medicines, World Vision reported on Thursday.

The organisation said Namibe was especially hard hit, with seven people so far reported dead and more than 7,000 families without shelter. The floods had not only caused severe damage to houses and transport infrastructure, but had also isolated the province, the report said.

Valuable farmland had been destroyed, sparking fears of critical food shortages. Parts of the Cunene province had been isolated and dozens of Angolan truck drivers had been stranded on the Namibian side of the border, hampering the flow of supplies into Angola, according to the report. In addition, flood victims in Daube Grande in Benguela Province were in need of staplefood and medicines.

The worst affected areas in Bie Province, said World Vision, were in areas held by UNITA. Affected populations had mainly fled to the town of Cuemba, where they are left without even the bare necessities. The country’s capital, Luanda, had also been affected. In the suburbs of Cacuaco, the housing compound of the ministry of fishing and environment had been heavily flooded, causing damage estimated at US $1 million. Other neighborhoods like Cazeugat and Hojyi Ya Henda had experienced similar destruction, according to the organisation.