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Flooding claims 100 lives in Sudan in two weeks

The file photo shows a Sudanese man looking at floodwater in the capital Khartoum. (AP)

Flash flooding triggered by days of heavy torrential rainfall has claimed the lives of at least 100 people in Sudan over the past two weeks.

The Sudanese Red Crescent Society said on Sunday that at least 25 people died in the impoverished eastern state of Kassala, which borders Eritrea.

It confirmed that at least 100 people died nationwide and about 8,000 houses had been destroyed since heavy rains lashed several regions across the African country two weeks ago.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has said that the most affected states are Kassala, Sennar, South Kordofan, West Kordofan and North Darfur.

Residents in Kassala said thousands of people fled their homes after River Gash burst its banks.

Taha Mahmoud, chief of Makli village in Kassala, said, "We had no time. We simply fled, taking our children when our village was flooded in the night two weeks ago."

"We lost all our food, belongings and livestock. We're living in miserable conditions in makeshift huts that won't withstand heavy rains," Mahmoud noted, adding, "We are eating just one meal a day. Children are falling sick, and doctors are miles away."

Floodwaters also cut off the main highway between eastern Sudan and the capital Khartoum, forcing many people to take shelter in makeshift grass huts on hilltops.

Since early June, heavy flooding has affected more than 122,000 people and destroyed more than 13,000 houses in many parts of Sudan.

In August 2013, heavy rains and flooding killed at least 50 people and affected tens of thousands of people in Khartoum.


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