Niger floods claim over 50 lives Rescue efforts underway

Recent severe flooding in Niger has resulted in the deaths of at least 52 people.

The natural disaster has primarily affected the western regions of the country, which experienced heavy rainfall, Caliber.Az reports, citing foreign media.

Rescue operations are currently underway, and the number of victims is still being updated. In the Tilia area, passengers of two buses were reported drowned when the vehicles were caught in the floodwaters on the Telemses-Tahoua road. Other individuals heading to a weekly market on the same road are also missing, swept away by the strong currents of overflowing rivers. The search for survivors and victims is being carried out by defense and security forces, including gendarmerie and national guard units. The rescue efforts are complicated by the challenging terrain.

The affected regions have seen roads washed out and agricultural crops destroyed. Since the start of the rainy season in Niger two weeks ago, the floods have claimed at least 94 lives, with 93 people injured and over 137,000 affected.

In recent days, floods have also impacted several other West and Central African countries, including Guinea, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Liberia, Mali, Nigeria, Togo, and Chad. According to the UN, the total number of people affected across the region exceeds 700,000.