Floods kill at least 600 after weeks of heavy rain

More than 600 people have been killed in the worst floods in Nigeria for more than a decade.

weeks with heavy rainfalls, more than 1.3 million people have forced to flee from their houses, and forecasts warn that further floods could possibly come.

The rising water has also destroyed more than a quarter of a million tomorrow arable land in a country that the United Nations said in the past month that it was exposed to a high risk of catastrophic hunger.

"Unfortunately, over 603 people have died to this day," said the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Sadiya Umar Farouq, in an explanation at the weekend.

The Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari, according to a statement by the presidency, "indicated everyone involved to restore normality".

Nigeria experiences floods every year, especially in coastal areas, but this year's floods have been the worst for more than a decade.

The NASA published the satellite images of the condition of the catastrophe with widespread standing water and the river Niger, which devoured the surrounding country.

"The rainy season was particularly hard in 2022, with severe rains that caused fatal, destructive floods in numerous states," said the space authority.

In addition to unusual rainfalls, of which the authorities say they are caused by climate change, they also blame the catastrophe on the emergency reduction of excess water from the Lagdo dam in the neighboring Cameroon.

While the rainy season usually begins around June, the rains have been particularly strong since August, said the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA).

The season can extend in the south of the country until November, and the state's weather authority has warned that the floods could continue in the southern states, including Anambra, Delta, Rivers, Cross River and Bayelsa.

flood was blamed for the outbreak of diseases and also for tragedies among those who flee from the water. Last week a boat capsized and killed dozens of people who tried to escape the rising water.

The floods have been the worst since 2012 when 363 people died and more than 2.1 million were sold.

Subsahara Africa is disproportionately affected by climate change and many of its economies have already struggled with the effects of the Russia Ukraine War.

Requirements have warned that the devastating floods could influence the prices in the country with around 200 million inhabitants in which rice imports are prohibited to boost local production.

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