Death toll due to heavy rains rises to 8 in Hargeisa town

The death toll due to torrential rains, which has lashed Hargeisa town in the breakaway Somaliland on Monday evening, climbed to 8 and injured over 26 people.

Six more bodies have been recovered, taking the death toll in the area to eight, while twenty-six other were admitted hospital.

According to the Ahmed Dagah district commissioner, over100 houses were destroyed including residential, and commercial and public utilities mostly schools in his area of administration alone.

Sources from the mayor’s office say 41,000 people were affected in the entire town, and around 30,000 were moved to safer places.

Mohamed Omar a resident of  Hargeisa town said a wall of the house came down during the heavy downpour that rocked the town yesterday and lead led deaths of two people.

Most of the roads were affected by floods.

Farah Osman, another resident in Hargeisa says he saw five people who were seriously injured and were taken to nearby hospital.

Hargeisa Mayor Abdirahman Soltelco has visited the scene of the destroyed building on hours after the incident.

The downpours, the heaviest since the start of the rainy season, have caused flooding and landslides in many areas of the town.

Soltelco, told the reporters that the roads that were impassable as a result of the heavy downpour that started at 4pm.

“The roads are flooded and fire engines cannot pass,” said Soltelco.