JUNIOR D.KANNAH, AFP | A woman street vendor covers her make-shift stall with a tarp as rains flood the streets in a neighborhood of Kinshasa, back in April 19, 2012

Floods triggered by heavy rains and a river bursting its banks have killed at least 50 people and left thousands homeless in the southwest Democratic Republic of Congo, a provincial governor told AFP on Thursday.

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Torrential rains caused the Kalamu river, which flows through the city of Boma, to overflow for two hours before the waters receded, washing some of the victims across the border into Angola.

"The rains on the night of Monday to Tuesday in Boma have caused at least 50 deaths," Jacques Mbadu, governor of Kongo Central province, told AFP, adding that a search was still going on for "more bodies that may be buried in the mud".

"We buried 31 bodies on Wednesday and we expect to get about 20 more bodies back today that ended up across the border in Angola," Mbadu added.

Mbadu said the waters hit a peak of two metres (six feet) above their usual level, destroying at least 500 homes and leaving several thousand people homeless.

Boma, which lies near the mouth of the River Congo around 470 kilometres (300 miles) southwest of Kinshasa, is the country's only Atlantic port.

"This is a cyclical phenomenon which happens every 10 years. It last happened in January 2015 but with climate change it's now happened again in December 2016," Mbadu said.

Several locals told AFP that two of the city's three districts were still covered in mud, up to a metre deep in some places.

Congolese towns and cities are typically built up in a haphazard fashion and government services to deal with natural disasters are practically non-existent.

Despite its vast mineral wealth, Congo is classed among the world's poorest countries and two thirds of its 70 million inhabitants get by on less than $1.25 a day.

(AFP)</s>Flood in DR Congo kills at least 50 people, leaves thousands homeless

By Deutsche Welle According to local authorities, more than 1,000 houses were flooded

The post Flood in DR Congo kills at least 50 people, …read more</s>Flooding leaves 50 dead, up to 20 missing in southern Congo

KINSHASA, Congo (AP) — Officials say torrential rains and flooding have left at least 50 people dead in southwestern Congo.

Storms earlier this week battered the town of Boma, which is 470 kilometers (nearly 300 miles) south of the capital, Kinshasa.

Jacques Mbadu Nsitu, governor of Kongo-Central province, says as many as 20 other people remain missing.

The governor says water levels rose dramatically to between 2 and 3 meters (6 and 9 feet) high within about two hours' time.

The flooding has left at least 1,000 people in the area homeless. Many of those affected lived along the river, and officials in Boma were urging residents Thursday not to rebuild in the low-lying areas.</s>At least 50 people die as heavy floods hit the south-west of the Democratic Republic of Congo....
• In the last 1 day
• Floods in Southwest Congo Kill at Least 50 VOA Africa (Yesterday) - Flooding this week in the Democratic Republic of Congo port city of Boma killed at...</s>Flooding this week in the Democratic Republic of Congo port city of Boma killed at least 50 people and left another 10,000 homeless, authorities told Reuters on Wednesday. Torrential rain on Monday night caused the Kalamu River to overflow, flooding two districts of the southwestern city, said Therese-Louise Mambu, health minister for Kongo Central province.

Start the conversation, or Read more at Reuters.</s>At least 50 people have died in Western Congo after flooding caused by heavy rains on Thursday.

More than 1,000 houses were flooded in the city of Boma near the Angolan border, according to local authorities.

Some 10,000 people have been left homeless, the city’s mayor Marie-Jose Nsuami said.

A crisis task force had been set up to help the flood victims and rescue operations was ongoing.</s>Flooding this week in the Democratic Republic of Congo port city of Boma killed at least 50 people and left another 10,000 homeless, authorities told Reuters on Wednesday. Torrential rain on Monday night caused the Kalamu River to overflow, flooding two districts of the southwestern city, said Therese-Louise Mambu, health minister for Kongo Central province. […]

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Also, Like us on facebook</s>In Congo: At least 50 dead, 10,000 homeless in floods

A crisis task force had been set up to help the flood victims and rescue operations was ongoing.

At least 50 people have died in Western Congo after flooding caused by heavy rains on Thursday.

More than 1,000 houses were flooded in the city of Boma near the Angolan border, according to local authorities.

Some 10,000 people have been left homeless, the city’s mayor Marie-Jose Nsuami said.

A crisis task force had been set up to help the flood victims and rescue operations was ongoing.

This post was syndicated from pulse.ng - Nigeria's entertainment & lifestyle platform online. Click here to read the full text on the original website.

Also, Like us on facebook</s>No less than 50 persons have been feared dead with 10,000 others homeless in Western Congo after flooding caused by heavy rains on Thursday.

The rain – which flowed powerfully – caused the Kalamu river, which runs through the city of Boma, to burst its banks on Tuesday.

It was gathered that the bodies of some of the victims had ended up in neighbouring Angola, after being carried away by the surge, while some areas of the city were buried in up to a metre of mud.

More than 1,000 houses were flooded in the city of Boma near the Angolan border, according to local authorities.

Some 10,000 people have been left homeless, the city’s mayor Marie-Jose Nsuami said.

The post Floods Leave 50 Dead, 10,000 Homeless In DR Congo appeared first on 360Nobs.com.

This post was syndicated from 360Nobs.com. Click here to read the full text on the original website.

Also, Like us on facebook</s>KINSHASA: Floods triggered by heavy rains and a river bursting its banks have killed at least 50 people and left thousands more homeless in southwestern Congo, a provincial governor said on Thursday.

Torrential rains caused the Kalamu river, which flows through the city of Boma into the River Congo, to overflow for two hours before the waters receded, washing some of the victims across the border into Angola.

The waters left parts of the city, Democratic Republic of Congo’s sole Atlantic port, covered in up to a metre of mud and a search was under way to dig out more bodies that may be buried.

“The rains on the night of Monday to Tuesday in Boma have caused at least 50 deaths,” Jacques Mbadu, governor of Kongo Central province told AFP.

“We buried 31 bodies on Wednesday and we expect to get about 20 more bodies back today that ended up across the border in Angola,” Mbadu added.

Mbadu said the waters hit a peak of two metres above their usual level, destroying at least 500 homes and leaving several thousand people homeless.

Boma, which lies near the mouth of the River Congo around 470 kilometres southwest of the capital Kinshasa, is home to between 150,000 and 200,000 people.

“This is a cyclical phenomenon which happens every 10 years. It last happened in January 2015 but with climate change it’s now happened again in December 2016,” Mbadu said.

Locals told AFP that two of the city’s three districts were still covered in mud, up to a metre deep in some places, and described tragic scenes as the waters rushed dramatically into their houses.

“I lost my two children, carried off by the waters, which rose up to three metres like a tsunami. I could only watch them as they were washed away,” Faustin Lutete, a government employee, said.

Fisherman Jean-Marie Kola said he just had time to “run far away, as our house was showing signs of fragility. It collapsed later.”

Shopkeeper Camille Inonga said he had “lost everything” in the flash floods.

“My shop is covered in mud. I can’t get in there. This is a whole life gone up in smoke,” he said.

Provincial governor Mbadu said the authorities were encouraging those left homeless by the floods to seek shelter with relatives to avoid “creating more problems”, rather than putting them in reception centres.

He said he had been working with a Dutch company to divert the “waters of the Congo river, whose enormous flow puts pressure on the Kalamu, to try to prevent these floods happening again.” Congolese towns and cities are typically built up in a haphazard fashion and government services to deal with natural disasters are practically non-existent.

Floods in Kinshasa in December 2015 left more than 30 people dead and 20,000 families homeless, most of them in the capital’s slums, where residents were left to battle with their bare hands through noxious mud, slime and fecal matter.

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At least 50 people drown and thousands are left homeless due to flooding in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.