Over 33,000 households, or around 236,000 people, have been affected by the flooding in Cameroon due to persistent rains in the northern part of the nation, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in a recent report.
According to the report, more than 38,000 women of childbearing age and over 4,000 pregnant women have been impacted by the natural disaster.
"Recent floods in the Far North region of Cameroon, particularly in the departments of Diamaré, Logone et Chari, Mayo-Danay, and Mayo-Tsanaga, have caused considerable damage. As of 10 September 2024, torrential rains have destroyed more than 18,000 homes, flooded tens of thousands of hectares of crops, and caused the loss of thousands of animals," the UN organization said.
The town of Yagoua, near the border with Chad, is one of the hardest hit, with neighborhoods underwater and almost 200 schools affected.
A dozen deaths have been recorded, along with tens of thousands of hectares of flooded agricultural crops and the loss of more than a thousand heads of livestock, said the OCHA.
Victims have been relocated to a camp on the outskirts of the city, according to local media. The government has allocated 350 million CFA francs (approximately $590,000) to help those affected.
"Continued rains and rising water levels raise fears of a worsening situation and an increasing risk of epidemics in the coming days and weeks. Local authorities and humanitarian partners are implementing emergency responses but are facing major logistical challenges, including difficult access to disaster-affected areas," the OCHA added.