Flooding causes severe damage, claims 15 lives in Tanzania

The heavy rainfall that pounded Tanzania’s Coast, Morogoro and Dar es Salaam regions for three consecutive days left at least 15 people dead and caused devastating damage to private property and public infrastructure, leaving thousands stranded and without shelter.

“Bridges have been washed away or developed cracks because of heavy rainfall that started on Friday,” Dar es Salaam Special Zone Regional Police Commander Commissioner Suleiman Kova told Sabahi on Monday (April 14th). “Water is flowing on top of the bridges and most areas are flooded.”

Kova said that as a result of the damages to bridges and roads, the authority in Dar es Salaam has ordered buses to delay departures temporarily while crews assess the situation.

“It is logical for the authority to intervene at this point by suspending buses and assessing the situation as a way to avoid unnecessary deaths,” he said.

By Sunday evening, the flooding claimed the lives of 10 people, including four children, in Dar es Salaam, and in Morogoro region two people were reported dead. Three more died in Dar es Salaam, Kova said on Tuesday, bringing the total to 15.

He said nearly 10,000 people in Dar es Salaam, Morogoro and Coast regions are without shelter because of the flooding, adding that the government had warned residents in flood prone areas such as Msimbazi Valley to relocate, although many did not comply.

Travellers stranded at bus depots

Yassin Juma Seleman, 54, a resident of Tanga region, is one of many passengers stranded in Dar es Salaam.

“My plan was to return in Tanga today, but I have been informed [Morogoro Road] has been closed and it is being constructed by Tanzania People’s Defence Forces, hence buses are not allowed to leave Dar es Salaam,” Seleman told Sabahi on Monday.

Seleman came to Dar es Salaam for medical treatment, and staying longer means he is incurring additional hotel costs, something he cannot afford.

“I do not know my fate,” he said. “I hope the army knows people are suffering and they will speed up the construction process.”

Minister of Works John Magufuli has suspended leave for all Tanzania National Roads Agency engineers so they can work around the clock with the army to repair the damages.

The government announced Monday that the main bridges would be repaired by Wednesday to allow traffic to flow, Tanzania’s The Guardian reported.

The Red Cross is working with other non-profit organisations and the army to provide shelter for those stranded at bus terminals or whose homes were affected.

Salum Mkumba, 54, who is camping at the Young Sports Club building in Jangwani area, told Sabahi they were provided with food and canvas to shelter themselves.

“We thank the Red Cross and the government for their timely assistance, otherwise we would have had no food or shelter,” he said. “The first day we slept on the floor with our kids, but the day after we were provided mattresses and now at least the weather is getting okay.”

Bridges washed away, houses destroyed

The rains caused massive destruction to public infrastructure — washing away important roads like Mpiji Bridge, which connects southern regions including Mtwara to Dar es Salaam, and Mapinga Bridge, which connects Bagamoyo to Dar es Salaam. Ruvu Bridge, which connects Morogoro to Dar es Salaam, also developed cracks, according to Dar es Salaam Regional Commissioner Saidi Mecky Sadiki.

He said about 12 other small bridges were washed away in Dar es Salaam and a number of roads, including Morogoro Road, Kilwa Road and Bagamoyo Road have been severely damaged. The flooding also demolished more than 100 houses and most of tenants’ belongings were submerged under water.

Asha Salum, 44, a resident of Jangwani area in Dar es Salaam, said when the rain started Friday morning at 9 am, she thought it would be an ordinary rainfall.

“But after two hours, the water started piling up and slowly trickled into our house,” she said. “By 11 am the sitting room was full of water.”

“I heard noise from my neighbours who had started moving their belongings outside, where it was even worse because it was continuing to rain. Then came a wave of water from the side of Muhimbili, which almost submerged our houses,” Salum told Sabahi.

Mariam Ndelego, a 47-year-old stay-at-home mother whose house is located in Mkwajuni area, said she tried to gather her cooking pots, glasses and bed sheets, but when the wave of water came, it washed away everything in front of her.

“I could not even try to run for them because the water was moving them at a very fast speed you cannot imagine,” Ndelego told Sabahi. “What I did was to collect my two kids and run away from my house very fast. That is what saved our lives, but my neighbour, Abdallah, who remained inside was entangled and died.”

Sadiki said the government has done what it can to rescue people trapped in flooded houses in Jangwani area.

“In December 2011, Dar es Salaam was flooded and the government decided to relocate all people living in flood prone areas,” he told Sabahi. “They were given free plots at Mabwepande area with title deeds, but to everyone’s surprise most of them sold the plots and returned to Jangwani area. In such grounds, the government has no way to help them.”

Sadiki said residents and stranded travellers should expect no additional financial assistance from the government at this time.

However, the government has asked the 640-member Constituent Assembly to donate 180 million shillings ($110,000), the body’s combined one day per diem, to help flood victims, Tanzania’s The Citizen reported.

While the heavy rains have subsided, the Tanzania Meteorological Agency says rains are expected to continue until the end of next month.

source: sabahionline