Floods caused by heavy rain have killed more than 20 people in Ethiopia. Furthermore, more than 12 thousand people had to leave their homes in the affected region of Somalia, in the east of the country, the regional government announced today. Houses, bridges and roads were destroyed and many animals were killed.
According to the regional government, torrential rains are expected to continue in the coming days. “The risk of flooding remains high.”
Warning about “El Niño”
The United Nations Office for Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) warned last month that East Africa would likely receive more rain than usual between October and December this year. The reason given was the meteorological phenomenon “El Niño”.
“El Niño” is characterized by the warming of surface waters in the Pacific Ocean. The weather phenomenon occurs on average every two to seven years and generally lasts nine to twelve months. “El Niño” causes heat and droughts in some regions of the world and heavy rains in others.