Media Wire Express Correspondent
The Congo River has risen to its highest level in more than 60 years, causing flooding throughout the DR Congo and Congo Republic that has killed more than 300 people over the past months, according to authorities.
Poor urban planning and weak infrastructure have made some African countries vulnerable to flash floods after intense rains, which have become more frequent.
On Wednesday, the river reached 6.20 meters above sea level, just shy of the 1961 record of 6.26 meters, said hydrology specialist , adding that the flooding had followed exceptionally high rains inland.
Nearly 300 people have died and 300,000 households have been affected, with tens of thousands of houses destroyed in DRC. In Congo Republic at least 17 people have died in floods across eight departments including the capital, with more than 60,000 households affected.
On January 6, the Catholic charity Caritas appealed for help for about 100,000 households in Mbandaka, a riverside city some 600 kilometres (370 miles) northwest of Kinshasa.
The Congo River basin floods every year between December and mid-January, according to RVF director Daniel Lwaboshi.
In lieu of the bridge, residents now have to use a makeshift canoe pushed by young men waist-deep in the water. The fare is 500 Congolese francs ($0.19, 0.17 euro cents).
Burst riverbanks are causing turmoil in DR Congo Capital Kinshasa with dark and foul-smelling water pouring into homes across-working neighboring in the central Africa Megacity.
Additional Source:Daily Mail
