15 000 hit by flooding

GOVERNMENT officials and members of the Namibia Red Cross Society are hard at work to bring relief to people affected by the seasonal flooding of the Zambezi River.

President Hifikepunye Pohamba is also on a two-day visit to the Caprivi and Kavango regions to assess the situation. Although the Zambezi level had dropped by yesterday, some 3 000 households – 15 000 people – need immediate assistance, an official of the Namibia Red Cross Society (NRCS) told The Namibian yesterday.”This goes for the Katima Mulilo Rural constituency, where some villages are flooded, and for Kabbe, while Linyanti and Kongola are not under immediate threat, although some flooding has taken place there as well,” said NRCS information officer Morning Star Rosario yesterday.”Roads to the eastern outskirts of Katima Mulilo are under water and boats are not always available while the mukoros or dugouts easily capsize, so we walked in waist-high water to assess the situation there,” Rosario added.”According to an assessment the 3 000 needy households were confirmed by the Regional Emergency Management Unit (Remu) of the Prime Minister’s Office,” she said.Meanwhile, NDF helicopters have been busy all week, helping with the distribution of emergency rations and tents, an official in the Caprivi Regional Council office said.The Acting Director of the Emergency Management Unit, Gabriel Kangowa, could not be reached as he was accompanying President Pohamba’s delegation in the field yesterday.Three fish farms of the Government’s aquaculture project have also been submerged by the river, which swept away fish and caused damage of thousands of Namibia dollars.One lodge owner a few kilometres east of Katima Mulilo said his tourism lodge was cut off because the access road was under water.”We have lost quite a few bookings and consequently income because tourists cannot reach us by car,” said Mary Rooken-Smith of the Caprivi River Lodge.”The home villages of some of our local staff are flooded and we put up tents for two families,” Rooken-Smith added.”But it’s already noticeable that the water levels are subsiding, which is good news, although water levels might rise again by April.”Although the Zambezi level had dropped by yesterday, some 3 000 households – 15 000 people – need immediate assistance, an official of the Namibia Red Cross Society (NRCS) told The Namibian yesterday. “This goes for the Katima Mulilo Rural constituency, where some villages are flooded, and for Kabbe, while Linyanti and Kongola are not under immediate threat, although some flooding has taken place there as well,” said NRCS information officer Morning Star Rosario yesterday.”Roads to the eastern outskirts of Katima Mulilo are under water and boats are not always available while the mukoros or dugouts easily capsize, so we walked in waist-high water to assess the situation there,” Rosario added.”According to an assessment the 3 000 needy households were confirmed by the Regional Emergency Management Unit (Remu) of the Prime Minister’s Office,” she said.Meanwhile, NDF helicopters have been busy all week, helping with the distribution of emergency rations and tents, an official in the Caprivi Regional Council office said.The Acting Director of the Emergency Management Unit, Gabriel Kangowa, could not be reached as he was accompanying President Pohamba’s delegation in the field yesterday.Three fish farms of the Government’s aquaculture project have also been submerged by the river, which swept away fish and caused damage of thousands of Namibia dollars.One lodge owner a few kilometres east of Katima Mulilo said his tourism lodge was cut off because the access road was under water.”We have lost quite a few bookings and consequently income because tourists cannot reach us by car,” said Mary Rooken-Smith of the Caprivi River Lodge.”The home villages of some of our local staff are flooded and we put up tents for two families,” Rooken-Smith added.”But it’s already noticeable that the water levels are subsiding, which is good news, although water levels might rise again by April.”

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