23-020-RO Alert Note: El Niño Flash Floods in Somalia

Rajo Organisation has submitted en alert note due to El Niño Flash Floods in Somalia.

Torrential deyr (October to December) rains have triggered floods, according to the Somalia Disaster Management Agency (SoDMA) and OCHA reports. As of 6 November, it is estimated that over 706,100 people have been affected, with over 113,690 people displaced from their homes across the country. Southwest and Jubaland states are the worst affected, with an estimated 268,243 and 268,365 people affected, respectively. In Hirshabelle, at least 145,800 people are reportedly affected, with 11,700 displaced following heavy rains on 5 November 2023. The latest report from OCHA on 9 November reported that at least 28 people have died, including at least eight children. The amount and intensity of rain have been exceptional in the Hiraan, Bakool, Bay, and Gedo regions. Floods destroyed farmlands, roads, and bridges, restricting access to towns and settlements for displaced people, while airstrips have become unusable. In Galmudug, 453 houses have been destroyed, and 7,000 latrines have been damaged or flooded in south Galkaio. In Galmudug State, six people, including two children, are reported to have died during flooding. In the Luuq district of the Gedo region, humanitarian actors and the federal government have secured a boat and are evacuating up to 2,400 people trapped by flood water.

The heavy rains and flash and riverine floods fueled by an El Nino, have intensified particularly in Puntland, Galmudug, Jubaland, Southwest, Hirshabelle states and in areas along the Juba River in Jubaland State as well as Somaliland.