Tragedy Strikes in Southern Ethiopia: Mudslides Claim 157 Lives
Residents of two southern Ethiopian villages have reportedly been using bare hands to dig through dirt in search of landslide survivors in a remote, mountainous area southwest of the capital Addis Ababa.
At least 157 people have been killed by two mudslides in the remote Gofa zone of Ethiopia which has been hit with heavy rainfall. Many of them were trapped and buried as they tried to reach survivors of a first mudslide that was triggered by heavy rains on Monday, followed by a second one on Tuesday morning that struck during rescue operations.
Local authorities said young children and pregnant women were among the victims and they warned the search is ongoing and “there are bodies yet to be recovered” and many people remain unaccounted for. Gofa is part of the state known as the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples’ Region located about 320km southwest of the capital, Addis Ababa. Landslides are common during Ethiopia’s rainy season, which started in July and is expected to last until mid-September.
Impact of Climate Crisis
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said that “floods impacted over 19,000 people in several zones, in May, displacing over a thousand and causing damage to livelihoods and infrastructure”. The flooding and landslides occurred even as other parts of the country face severe drought. The UN reports that millions in the country face malnutrition due to recent climate-related challenges. (Source AP and other news agencies)
