At least 18 governorates across Yemen have seen the highest rainfall since July this year, with widespread destructive flash floods resulting in infrastructure, homes, food stock, and livestock being washed away. Nearly 30,000 families have been affected, and at least 91 people killed, a figure expected to rise, with many more injured or missing. The most hard-hit governorates have been Hajjah and Mahweet in the northwest and Marib in central Yemen. However, with torrential rains forecasted to continue till 20 August, casualties and destruction figures are expected to rise further throughout the country.
“The country has been grappling with the impact of over 7 years of conflict, resulting in one of the highest populations of internally displaced people in the world. It’s therefore devastating to witness families who have been making do with the bare minimum, who have been living in tents for years, struggling to access the most basic of services, now have what little they had left washed away and destroyed,” said Bushra Aldukhainah, Area Manager for CARE Yemen’s office in Hajjah. “Over the past days, we have mobilized our teams to respond to the most immediate needs of those affected. We have already provided 25 families with cash assistance and are preparing to assist 230 more families.”
However, over 15,000 families affected in Hajjah will need access to food, water, shelter, sanitation, and to replace damaged or washed away belongings. CARE and other humanitarian actors are working to ensure at least 4,000 families in Hajjah are provided with cash assistance to enable them to meet their needs. ” said Bushra.
At least 190 sites housing over 12,000 internally displaced families in Marib have been damaged by flooding, alongside the communities who have been hosting them. “The floods came out of nowhere. I was sleeping with my five children in our shelter. At 3 am we were alerted in the neighbourhood about a hazard and woke up to water rising around us. I grabbed my children and rushed to higher ground. I left everything behind — documents, food, everything was washed away,” said Amani* a woman who has been displaced since she and her family had to flee their home in Hodeidah to Marib and is now impacted by the floods.
Source: CARE
