Lawmakers from the Central Equatoria State Legislative Assembly have called for an urgent rescue operation and humanitarian assistance for nearly 5,000 people affected by floods in islands in the River Nile and areas north of the capital Juba.
Addressing journalists on Wednesday in Juba, Thomas Peter Gore, a legislator representing the Northern Bari area of Juba County, said a heavy downpour on Tuesday increased the level of Nile waters, affecting all the villages of the Northern Bari Zone.
He said the areas affected by the floods include Gondokoro, Mangala, Jebel Ladu, Tibari, Kworojik, Luri, Digeri, and Juba Na Bari among others.
“We are here to represent our citizens who are down at the grassroots. What happened is that yesterday (Tuesday), floods hit our communities starting from Gondokoro, Mangala, Jebel Ladu, Tibari, Kworojik, Luri, Digeri, and Juba Na Bari, and these areas lie in the Northern Bari Zone. The people are currently suffering,” he said. “Now it is not easy for the affected people to get out of the islands and we are calling upon humanitarian organizations in the country to at rescue our citizens.”
According to Gore, the people who had gone to the islands to cultivate and got trapped there after torrential rain are currently being helped by the local island communities. He added that the floods destroyed crops and property of the people.
“At the moment they need boats to get out of the affected area and they have lost all their belongings,” the legislator added.
For his part, Edward Ladu Tongo, a state parliamentarian representing Ladu Payam, said the few people who were rescued by the local community are currently sheltering in school compounds in Ladu Payam.
“These people were displaced from the island and let us not forget that some communities of Mangala and Gondokoro have now come to our side here in Ladu Payam because of the floods,” he said. “So, I am calling upon humanitarian organizations and all government institutions to rescue these people as soon as possible.”
Ladu reiterated that the majority of people who are trapped in inundated areas require to be moved to higher grounds.
Meanwhile, a resident of one of the flood-affected areas, Mirela Tartisio Modi, said her community’s boats have run out of fuel and urged the media to convey the message to the well-wishers to help.
“We do not even have fuel for the boats so the situation is bad but I am happy today that the media is here and I believe this message will reach out there and well-wishers will respond positively,” she stated.