1.7 million Somalians in need as catastrophic flooding wreak havoc

(23 Nov 2023)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:

ASSOCIATED PRESS
Beledweyne, Somalia - 19 November 2023
1. Various drone aerials of flooding ++MUTE++
2. Various of people wading through flooded streets

ASSOCIATED PRESS
Nairobi, Kenya - 21 November 2023
3. Shashwat Saraf, East Africa Emergency Director at International Rescue Committee (IRC), sitting down at desk
4. Close of Saraf writing in book
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Shashwat Saraf, East Africa Emergency Director at International Rescue Committee (IRC):
"Before the floods even, we were talking about close to 15 million people who were food insecure in East Africa. Now we know that Somalia, Ethiopia and Kenya have just come out of one of the longest periods of drought, there were five failed rains which had already resulted in millions of people being displaced and being food insecure. With the floods now what we are seeing is that there are (an) additional 3.1 million people who are impacted by floods in the region and of those 1.7 million in Somalia alone."

ASSOCIATED
Beledweyne, Somalia - 19 November 2023
6. Various of people wading through flooded streets
7. Various of Hakima Mohamud Hareed, a mother of four who was recently displaced by internal conflict and now again by flooding
8. SOUNDBITE (Somali) Hakima Mohamud Hareed, displaced mother:
“By God’s mercy and grace, I am Hakima Mohamud Hareed. I fled the recent battles and came to an internally displaced camp with my four children, one of which is disabled, located within the town. Our houses were submerged by flooding as we were settling, and all our belongings were washed away by the floods, so we escaped only with our lives."
9. Wide of heavy rains and people wading through flooded street

ASSOCIATED
Nairobi, Kenya - 21 November 2023
10. Various of Saraf in office, checking phone
11. SOUNDBITE (English) Shashwat Saraf, East Africa Emergency Director at International Rescue Committee (IRC):
"More than 1.5 million hectares of land just in Somalia has been inundated because of the flooding which actually means that we will see agricultural loss on top of the already existing food insecurity in Somalia and across the region. The livestock are also particularly at risk because of vector-borne diseases and new diseases that come up. Similarly, the human population and children in particular will be affected because of the increase in cholera cases, increase in malaria and other water-borne diseases that we have started to see unfold in all these countries and especially in Somalia."

ASSOCIATED
Beledweyne, Somalia - 19 November 2023
12. Various of flooding, people wading through flooded streets
STORYLINE:
Catastrophic flooding has struck towns and communities in Somalia, wrecking havoc and leaving 1.7 million people in need of help, according to humanitarian aid groups.

The central Somali town of Beledweyne, which is situated in a region that crosses the Shabelle River, has been severely impacted by the floods that have hit several parts of the country.

Among the hundreds and thousands who have been suffering is Hakima Mohamud Hareed, a mother of four children.

Her family had recently fled fighting between government forces and the Al Shabaab militant group in search of safety and stability.

Hakima and her family settled in Kutiimo, a camp for IDPs in Beledweyne, but the extreme weather destroyed her small tent that offered little protection.

Rain lashed relentlessly from all sides, seeping through the flimsy fabric and dampening the belongings they had in their possession and the makeshift home they sheltered in.












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