Floods in Sudan kill 76, destroy thousands of houses; the Nile is at its highest levels in more than a century

Reuters (UK)
Thu, 04 Aug 2016 10:37 UTC

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Floods and heavy rain in Sudan have killed 76 people and destroyed thousands of homes in recent days, the interior minister said on Thursday.

Ismat Abdelrahman said 13 of Sudan's 18 provinces had been affected by flooding.

The Nile is at its highest levels in more than a century, swollen by heavy rain in many parts of the East African country, according to the water and irrigation ministry.

Interior ministry statistics showed downpours and flooding had completely destroyed 3,206 houses, and damaged 3,048 others in the eastern province of Kassala, one of the worst hit areas.

Sudan suffers from an underdeveloped infrastructure, particularly in rural areas, which makes it harder to cope with heavy rain and natural disasters.

(Reporting by Khaled Abdelaziz; Writing by Ola Noureldin; Editing by Lin Noueihed)