The office of Prime Minister Jean-Michel Sama Lukonde announced that the N1 highway connecting the capital Kinshasa to the port of Matadi will remain closed for 3-4 days in order to repair the damage caused by the bad weather.
At least 141 people have been killed in floods and landslides caused by heavy rains in the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the last 24 hours in Kinshasa, according to a new report released by the authorities of the African country. About 280 houses collapsed and 38,787 were flooded, according to the same source.
The office of Prime Minister Jean-Michel Sama Lukonde announced that the N1 highway connecting the capital Kinshasa to the port of Matadi will remain closed for 3-4 days in order to repair the damage caused by the bad weather.
Entire neighborhoods were submerged in muddy water in the early hours of Tuesday morning. Among the victims are nine members of the same family, among them small children. An AFP journalist saw the bodies lined up after they were pulled from the rubble of a collapsed house.
“Around 4 in the morning, we woke up to the water entering the house,” said a relative of the victims. “Having drained the water, believing that there was no longer any danger, we returned home to sleep. We were soaked.” A little later, however, a wall collapsed, crushing members of the family.
One of the worst hit settlements is Mont Engafula. “We have never seen a flood of this magnitude,” says AFP journalist Blanchard Mbubu, who lives in the area. But he explains that due to the haphazard construction, rainwater does not find a way out to the Congo River, resulting in frequent flooding in the area. He asks the authorities to intervene and demolish some houses if necessary.
In another neighborhood of the capital, a teenager offered – with compensation – to carry on his back those who wanted to cross a flooded street.
From the scattered fishing villages on the banks of the Congo River, the capital Kinshasa was gradually formed, which over the years developed into a metropolis of 15 million inhabitants. The area remains vulnerable to floods and landslides due to haphazard construction.
In 2019, about 40 people were killed by floods and landslides caused by torrential rains in Kinshasa.
RES-EMP
Read the News today and get the latest news.
Follow Skai.gr on Google News and be the first to know all the news.
With a wealth of experience honed over 4+ years in journalism, I bring a seasoned voice to the world of news. Currently, I work as a freelance writer and editor, always seeking new opportunities to tell compelling stories in the field of world news.
