Severe Weather Ravages East Africa And Turkey, Leaving Scores Dead And Displaced.
By Caroline Ameh
The northern regions of Tigray and Amhara in Ethiopia are reeling from intense droughts, claiming the lives of over 50 individuals and 4,000 cattle. Meanwhile, contrasting conditions plague the southern and eastern parts of Ethiopia, Kenya, and Somalia as they battle devastating floods, resulting in a reported 130 casualties across East Africa.
Somalia faces the brunt of this catastrophe, with over 50 lives lost and nearly 700,000 people forcibly displaced due to severe flooding, according to the Somali Disaster Management Agency. The Shabelle River’s overflow in Beledweyne wreaked havoc, displacing an estimated 90% of the town’s population, approximately 250,000 individuals, as Save the Children reports.
The situation exacerbates concerns of widespread hunger, with the UN cautioning that 4.3 million Somalians, a quarter of the nation’s populace, are at risk of plunging into “crisis-level hunger or worse.”
In a parallel disaster, Turkey grapples with the aftermath of a fierce storm that battered the country on November 18 and 19, culminating in the sinking of the Turkish-flagged cargo ship Kafkametler off the Black Sea coast.
The storm left 11 crew members missing after the vessel collided with a breakwater near Ereğli, following prior damage in October from a collision with a mine off Romania’s coast. Despite the severe weather hampering search efforts, the body of the ship’s cook was recovered once conditions eased.
Furthermore, a ship registered in Cameroon succumbed to the storm, splitting into two sections post-evacuation of its crew.
The calamities have prompted extensive relief and rescue missions, as infrastructure sustains significant damage, including homes, fallen trees, and flooding across various provinces. School closures in four provinces aimed to safeguard residents amidst the chaos. At least nine fatalities have been reported across three provinces, with approximately 50 individuals injured, further amplifying the scale of this devastating weather crisis
