Flooding in Eastern Congo Claims 62 Lives, 50 Missing
Heavy flooding triggered by torrential rains in eastern Congo has devastated several lakeside villages along Lake Tanganyika, resulting in at least 62 deaths and 50 people missing, Arab News reported. The floods struck early Friday morning around 5 a.m., sweeping away the village of Kasaba in the Ngandja sector.
The South Kivu provincial health minister, Théophile Walulika Muzaliwa, highlighted challenges in rescue efforts due to disrupted telephone lines and limited services. Local leaders, including sector and village chiefs, are coordinating on-site response alongside the Red Cross, the only humanitarian group currently present.
Search operations for bodies and missing persons are ongoing, with no definitive casualty count yet. This disaster follows last month’s flooding in Kinshasa, which killed 33 people.
The eastern region of Congo continues to face compounded crises amid escalating conflict since February between government forces and rebels, intensifying one of the world’s most severe humanitarian emergencies.
