Poor communities were among those hardest hit by the floods. Photo: Israel Ilboudo/Tearfund
23 September 2009
Five Tearfund partners are organising the distribution of essential aid to thousands of people made homeless by severe flooding in Burkina Faso.
Record-breaking amounts of rain deluged the country’s capital Ouagadougou which saw the worst flooding in 90 years and the loss of eight lives.
One man told a Tearfund partner how he had to tie himself to a tree to stop being swept away by the flood waters. Eventually he managed to get on top of a building to escape the water but not before he lost all his possessions.
Some 48,000 locals were forced to take shelter in public buildings, such as schools, and another 40,000 are staying with friends and family after 264 millimetres of rain fell in 12 hours.
Swept away
A road is lost under the flood waters. Photo: Israel Ilboudo/Tearfund
Five Tearfund partners, that work with and through local churches in Burkina Faso, are assessing the damage and looking to meet people’s physical and spiritual needs - Acts, Aead, Accedes, Credo and Ode.
Food, such as rice and maize, plus blankets, hurricane lamps and bedding are being distributed to 3,000 of the most vulnerable people, including those who’ve had their homes swept away.
Temporary shelter is also being provided, for example a secondary school run by Acts is acting as a home for 180 families.
Clinging to survival
Orphans and widows have been severely affected by the flooding and are ‘clinging to survival’, according to Acts’ Executive Director Joanna Ilboudo.
Joanna said, ‘We are praising the Lord that none of the widows and orphans in our care lost their lives.
‘But they have lost all their material possessions. Grain stored in flooded buildings was destroyed by the muddy waters. Any money stored in their homes was swept away.’
The storm and flood waters destroyed many homes. Photo: Israel Ilboudo/Tearfund
Lengthy rebuilding
The rebuilding process looks set to be lengthy. Up to 150,000 people will need support for the next six months, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
The rains at the start of the month left large areas of the capital flooded, with a hospital, power plant, roads and bridges among the infrastructure being damaged.
The city’s poorest neighbourhoods are among the worst affected areas, says the UN.
Since June, 600,000 people have been hit by severe flooding across West Africa with 160 people losing their lives.
Burkina Faso's capital suffered the worst flooding in 90 years. Photo: Israel Ilboudo/Tearfund