Flooding this week in the Democratic Republic of Congo port city of Boma killed at least 50 people and left another 10,000 homeless, authorities told Reuters on Wednesday.
Torrential rain on Monday night caused the Kalamu River to overflow, flooding two districts of the southwestern city, said Therese-Louise Mambu, health minister for Kongo Central province.
“The damage is very serious,” she said. “We continue to look for other bodies.”
Resident Jeanne Nzita told Reuters: “Everything was taken away – the windows and the doors. All that remains of our house is the walls and the roof.”
Scientific models predict that climate change will bring increased rainfall to central Africa over the course of this century. Central and western parts of the Congo Basin are expected to be worst hit.
Dozens died late last year in the capital Kinshasa as it recorded unusually heavy rains during the rainy season.