Heavy rains cause 63 deaths

Heavy rains from April to early May have caused some 63 deaths and left hundreds of people homeless in Rwanda, humanitarian officials in the capital, Kigali, and FEWS NET reported.

In its report covering this period, FEWS NET - the USAID-funded Famine Early Warning System, identified the most affected prefectures as Cyangugu, Kibuye, Byumba, Kigali Rurale and Kigali Ville. So far, it said, the government, International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the World Food Programme (WFP) were providing emergency relief. The ICRC was providing shelter, cooking utensils, jerry cans and blankets. WFP Kigali told IRIN on Wednesday that the number of homeless people would by known on Friday, but that so far hundreds of families had been affected.

Although rains had damaged homes and infrastructure across the country, FEWS reported, food security remained good at the national level. This was because most crops were cultivated on hills, which were unaffected by the downpours and subsequent flooding, as opposed to lowlands. FEWS reported that crop production this season would be good, so long as rainfall became moderate and remained so until the end of May. However, it added, continued heavy rains would cause more deaths and damage crops and infrastructure.

It said preventive maintenance and repairs to damaged infrastructure were needed urgently, "especially as another El Nino phenomenon was expected by September-October". El Nino is the warming of the eastern tropical Pacific every few years that disrupts the weather pattern of the region. When it last occurred in Eastern Africa in 1997/98, it caused millions of dollars' worth in damage to infrastructure.