Torrential rains kill children amid UN warns of severe flooding in Somalia

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Torrential rains kill children amid UN warns of severe flooding in Somalia

MOGADISHU (HORN OBSERVER) - More than nine children were killed after torrential rains hit parts of Somali capital this week amid UN warns of high risk of severe flooding in the horn of Africa nation.

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MOGADISHU (HORN OBSERVER) - More than nine children were killed after torrential rains hit parts of Somali capital this week amid UN warns of high risk of severe flooding in the horn of Africa nation.

A local aid organization said in a statement that most of the children died after a house collapsed following heavy rains in Mogadishu.

According to Somali Red Crescent Society, the children who were rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment succumbed to their critical injuries.

"Sadly 9 children rushed to hospital following the collapse of a house in Mogadishu have succumbed to their injuries. Heavy rains have caused flash floods and structural damage" in the Bulo-hubey neighborhood of Wadajir district in Mogadishu, the Director of Organizational Development and Communications for the Somali Red Crescent Society, Abdulkadir Afi, said on Twitter.

Five of the children who were under 10 years of age were from one of the poor families in Bulo-hubey neighbourhood.

Meanwhile, UN food agency has warned at least 150,000 people are at immediate risk from imminent floods as river levels in parts of the country continue to rise due to torrential rains.

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)’s Somalia Water and Land Information Management (FAO-SWALIM) flood bulletin released in Mogadishu warned that Jubba and Shabelle Rivers have risen at an alarming rate over the past week due to the heavy rains.

The agency also noted that level of the rivers rose after the upper parts of the Ethiopian highlands received torrential rains, causing large volumes of water to flow rapidly towards Somalia.