Sharjah24 – AFP: At least 50 people have died in floods caused by exceptionally heavy rains in northern Nigeria's Jigawa state since the start of the wet season in June, an official said Monday.
Jigawa, similarly to other states in the agrarian region, records flooding every year but this has been the worst deluge it has experienced, according to the state emergency management agency (SEMA).
"Cumulatively, we have recorded 50 deaths from flooding across the 27 local governments in the state," Yusuf Sani, head of Jigawa's SEMA told AFP Monday.
"The last few days have been quite challenging as rain fell for three days non-stop," Sani added.
Emergency workers had been sent to affected communities to count the displaced but he estimated they were in the "thousands", he added.
Kafin Hausa district has been the worst hit, with 10 people killed, 68 hospitalised and 1,436 displaced -- most of them from Balangu village where 237 houses were destroyed, Sani said.
He said that 11 temporary shelters for the displaced had been opened, including in schools that are closed for the holiday.
Aminu Ibrahim who lost his home to floods in Kirikasamma district now lives with relatives in a primary school along with 12 other displaced families.
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