Africa NOW! Deadly Floods Season. Devastation Across Nigeria, Niger, Chad, and Sudan

Residents of several African countries are experiencing the aftermath of widespread, devastating floods occurring during the rainy season. However, experts note that this year, the rains have been much more intense in many regions, and floods have also struck areas where they were previously almost unheard of.

In Nigeria, farmers hadn't yet recovered from the drought when heavy rains swept across the usually arid and desert-like northern part of the country. Twenty-eight out of thirty-six states, including Bauchi, Zamfara, Sokoto, Niger, and Jigawa, were particularly hard hit. In many of these areas, the rains have been continuous since early August. As a result, more than 262,000 acres of farmland were severely damaged.

According to the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), as of September 2, over 205,000 people have been displaced by the floods, more than 510,000 people have been affected, and at least 170 people have died. The floods have destroyed or damaged more than 76,500 homes and washed away bridges and sections of roads.
Babtunde Ojey, the Director of the IRC in Nigeria, commented on the unprecedented nature of the flooding:
“The frequency of this flooding is unprecedented; it now occurs annually, and its impact on communities is severe.”

Manzo Ezekiel, a spokesperson for NEMA, stated that while some areas of Nigeria are prone to flooding during the rainy season, this year, floods were recorded in regions where they rarely occurred in the past.

In Niger, this year’s rainy season has been especially destructive. Floodwaters have destroyed more than 37,000 heads of livestock, over 7,400 acres of crops, and 47,400 pounds of food supplies, exacerbating the already critical food shortage in the region.
In the last three months, floods triggered by heavy rains have displaced 353,000 people, killed at least 217, and injured about 200. The regions of Maradi, Zinder, and Tahoua were the hardest hit.
Unfortunately, more rainfall is expected in the coming weeks.

The situation in Chad is also extremely dire. All 23 provinces in the country have been affected by flooding, with some regions receiving an abnormal amount of rainfall.
For example, in the Tibesti region, even in August, the wettest month of the year, rains usually last no more than two and a half hours per month, with an average of 0.2 inches of precipitation.

But now, the rains have continued for a week, leading to widespread flooding in this typically arid region.
The material damage is immense: across the country, more than 620,000 acres of fields have been flooded, over 70,000 homes destroyed, and 29,000 livestock killed. The high water levels are making it difficult to deliver humanitarian aid.

As of August 30, at least 145 people have died, and nearly 1 million have been affected by the rains and flash floods since the beginning of the rainy season in June.

In neighboring Sudan, according to the state news agency SUNA, the death toll from the floods has reached 132.
In the northeastern part of the country, the collapse of the Arbaat Dam, located about 12 miles from Port Sudan in the Red Sea state, led to catastrophic flooding. Torrents of water literally swept away 20 villages in nearby areas, and another 50 villages were severely affected. About 50,000 people were left homeless.
Fleeing the floods, villagers took refuge in the mountains, where they faced a new threat—snakes and scorpions.

Flash floods triggered by heavy rains and the dam collapse struck villages, destroying more than 12,000 homes across 10 provinces and affecting more than 30,000 families.

It's bitter to realize that such severe destruction and immense human loss are caused by water, even though humanity already has technologies capable of reducing the intensity of rainfall and minimizing the impact of floods. These are atmospheric water generators. They are already operating in various parts of the world, literally extracting water from the air. Widespread adoption of this technology would not only provide people with an abundance of free, clean drinking water but also normalize atmospheric moisture levels and precipitation distribution globally.

This is a truly effective and simple solution, but its implementation requires that people become aware of these technologies and demand their widespread adoption from politicians and scientists. You can learn more about AWGs in the documentary “Water from Air: The Path to Saving Humanity”.
And remember, every minute of delay costs human lives.