Congo-Kinshasa: National Day of Mourning as Death Toll From Floods, Mudslides Rises #AfricaClimateCrisis

Moses Sawasawa /MSF
The aftermath of flooding in DR Congo, May 2023.
8 May 2023
allAfrica.com
By Esther Rose

Cape Town — South Kivu province has been battered by torrential rain, causing an overflow to rivers in the region, that has left significant damage in Bushushu and Nyamukubi villages, BBC News  reports.

According to the Governor of South Kivu, Theo Ngwabidje Kasi, the death toll has risen to at least 401.

At least 176 people were reported dead on Friday, May 5, 2023 and many more are missing.

A further 205 people were seriously injured in the flooding caused when rivers burst their banks following heavy rains on Thursday, May 4, while 167 people are listed as missing.

According to BBC News, in several villages close to the shore of Lake Kivu, people have been digging through the mud with their hands in a desperate search for missing relatives.

President Felix Tshisekedi has declared a national day of mourning today, Monday May 8, and a team of ministers is set to travel to the region to coordinate humanitarian aid and disaster management, government spokesman Patrick Muyaya has said.

The floods in DR Congo comes two days after devastating floods in Rwanda in which 131 people died and thousands of homes were destroyed on the other side of Lake Kivu.

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