At least 109 people are dead in western Rwanda after heavy rain caused massive flooding in the region early Wednesday morning, according to authorities.
“The death toll from last night’s heavy rains and floods continues to rise, with at least 109 people now confirmed dead in Western and Northern Provinces,” the Rwanda Broadcasting Agency tweeted via its official account, alongside a video.
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The video shows water racing down a destroyed muddy road with battered houses in the background.
BREAKING:
The death toll from last night’s heavy rains and floods continues to rise, with at least 109 people now confirmed dead in Western and Northern Provinces.#RBANews pic.twitter.com/4YycPKHrE4
— Rwanda Broadcasting Agency (RBA) (@rbarwanda) May 3, 2023
“It rained heavily all night, causing immense suffering in the districts of Ngororero, Rubavu, Nyabihu, Rutsiro, and Karongi,” Francois Habitegeko, governor of the Western Province, told Reuters. “The soil was already soaked from the previous days of rain, which caused landslides that closed roads.”
Habitegeko added that others were wounded and the flooding caused people to be trapped under their homes. He said emergency responders’ main priority is to rescue those people.
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According to the World Bank, extreme weather events such as floods and droughts have increased in Rwanda over the past 30 years.
