Thousands flee flooding

Tens of thousands of people were fleeing their homes and the authorities were urging others to be prepared to move at short notice as the swollen Nile submerged whole villages, the IFRC said on Monday. Whole settlements had been flooded in Nile River and Sinnar states as the Nile burst its banks, but growing concern was for the capital, Khartoum, which was also at risk, it said. The Federation is appealing for nearly 1.3 million Swiss francs (almost US $770,000) to support ongoing relief work for flood victims, and for contingency measures should the Nile burst its banks in the capital, as it did in August 1988, with catastrophic consequences. “The next two to three weeks will be crucial,” it said. “The rivers and dams upstream of the Blue Nile are full, and any additional rainfall could trigger a disaster. Latest reports are of heavy rains in the Blue Nile catchment areas in Ethiopia.” A contingency plan had already been activated, and volunteers from the Sudanese Red Crescent had been clearing debris, distributing food and blankets and providing first aid and social support to several of the affected areas along the banks of the Blue Nile, the IFRC stated. In the first instance, it was important to provide food and non-food assistance to an estimated 10,000 vulnerable, displaced people in Nile River, Kassala and Sinnar states; there was still an urgent need for non-food relief items such as tarpaulins, chlorine tablets and essential drugs and equipment for mobile health clinics, while transportation for relief teams was also a problem, the agency said. In view of the rising levels of the Blue Nile still forecast, further needs would have to be assessed later, it added.