At least 700 households lost their homes on Tuesday night to flash floods after torrential rainfall in Wau town in Western Bahr el Ghazal State.
The areas that were most affected include Lokoloko, Hai Jezeera, Kosti, Ngonia, Ngobo, and New Site.
The victims attribute their suffering to the newly upgraded 60-kilometer road by ARC Company within Wau town, part of a presidential pledge to build tarmac roads in the area.
On Thursday morning, Wau Town Mayor Paulino Saed Uku and a media team visited the affected families and described their situation as dire. Some residents urged the state authorities and ARC Company to urgently address the issue.
Tereza Charles, one of the affected residents and a mother of eight, said it was the first time for such an occurrence.
“I have been living in the Kosti suburb for a long time but this is the first time I have seen such flooding. The water has no channel to pass through because of this new road. We are in a bad situation. Last night, my children were all in water, and I had to take them out through the window,” she lamented. “My house is badly damaged by the water, and in this area, some homes completely collapsed last night. Nothing is causing our suffering more than this road.”
She added: “I am in a bad situation with my children and could not cook today because of the stress.”
Charles urged the ARC Company to create water channels and urged the government to act immediately to mitigate the situation.
Another resident, Paul Ukell, explained that they had warned the company about the need for water drainage channels, but no action was taken.
“The rain started at 4 a.m. We have been telling them about the potential danger, but our houses are now destroyed,” he said. “The government did not listen to us, and now my home and belongings are gone.”
For his part, Sebit Margan, a resident of the Hai Ngonia area, said the affected people need urgent assistance with shelter.
“Our situation is not good. They said they would build a tarmac road but it has now only caused flooding,” he bemoaned. “Our homes are destroyed, and everything is disorganized. We need assistance with plastic sheets.”
Wau Town Mayor Paulino Saed Uku visited the affected families and confirmed that over 700 houses were damaged.
“We surveyed the damage in Lokoloko, Hai Jezeera, Hai Kosti, Ngobo, and Ngonia and confirmed that the rain has affected more than 700 houses,” he stated.
Uku attributed the flooding to poor road construction.
“This is a human mistake due to the ongoing road construction because they upgraded the roads but did not provide water channels, causing unprecedented flooding,” he acknowledged.
The mayor promised to forward the residents’ complaints to the state authorities for intervention.
“The level of damage is beyond the municipality’s capacity and I urge the affected families to remain calm as the government addresses the issue,” Uku said.