Floods kill many, threaten thousands more

Many people in West African cities are threatened by rain-induced floods which have already claimed lives in Ghana and Cameroon, according to news organisations and environmentalists.

In Limbe, southern Cameroon, floods on Wednesday have killed at least 19 people while many others were missing, Reuters quoted state radio as reporting on Friday. It said most of the victims were killed in landslides. At least seven people are reported to have died in Accra after six hours of rains swamped neighbourhoods in low-lying areas, forcing people to take refuge on roofs and rendering an estimated 5,000 persons homeless.

Heavy rains have also been registered in other West African capitals such as Abidjan, where floods occurred in low-income neighbourhoods in 1999 during the main rainy season, which usually begins in July in Liberia, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Togo, Benin, Nigeria and Cameroon.

The Benin capital, Cotonou, is among the vulnerable areas. A source at the state environmental agency told IRIN that July’s heavy rains are usually accompanied by floods. These result from factors including a high water table, the resultant saturation of the ground and inadequate drainage systems.

People most at risk include the thousands who live in unplanned settlements in marshy areas near Cotonou’s lagoons. Those living in makeshift shelters in gullies and on hillsides in various poor neighbourhoods throughout the region are also considered vulnerable.

Deforestation has been cited as another factor that contributes to flooding. AFP reported a Liberian Agriculture Minister Roland Massaquoi as saying that that massive logging in Liberia was changing weather patterns and giving rise to destructive floods that have been affecting several towns and villages.