The Akon International Airport and several residential areas in President Salva Kiir’ Gogrial West County in Warrap state are inundated by floodwaters, authorities have said.
County Commissioner Victor Wek Koor told Radio Tamazuj Sunday that many residents have been forced to relocate with their livestock and farm produce.
Koor told Radio Tamazuj that the floods came from the direction of Aweil South County of Northern Bahr el-Ghazal State, destroying houses and cutting off roads.
“Six Payams in Gogrial West County are seriously affected by floods and it is now three weeks since the onset of the destruction of farms and homes. The heavy flooding came from Aweil South County, moving through forests and reached us here via rivers Lol, Kuom and Jur,” he said.
The Commissioner said construction of the Akon International Airport had stopped as local engineers demanded payment equivalent to what their foreign counterparts earned.
He disclosed that Sri Lankan engineers had left amidst the delay in their pay, leaving the local counterparts idle.
A local resident, Paulino Mathiang, said the displaced people were camping on the road sides with their crops aired on the roads.
Mathiang called on the State Government and NGOs to support the affected populations as they were exposed to the vagaries of weather and mosquitoes.
Another resident, Adhil Garang, said the health condition of the children was particularly worrying.