from ADANE BIKILA in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Ethiopia Bureau
ADDIS ABABA, (CAJ News) – THE death toll is escalating after the landslides that plagued south-western Ethiopia in recent days.
Initially, it was reported that 157 people had been killed following the multiple disasters on Sunday and Monday.
The death toll has increased to at least 257 as of late Thursday in what has been one of the worst tragedies in the East African country in recent memory.
Some 600 people in the iconic country that hosts the headquarters of the African Union (AU) have been displaced after the mudslides in the Gofa zone.
“We stand in strong solidarity with the people and Government of #Ethiopia as rescue efforts continue to find the missing and assist the displaced,” AU Commission chairperson, Moussa Mahamat said.
The Ethiopian Disaster Risk Management Commission is providing humanitarian assistance to the victims with food and non-food items in a country that is also bedeviled by a series of civil conflicts.
Humanitarian organisations are racing against time to provide urgent support to the most vulnerable.
On Friday, today, light to moderate rain with localized thunderstorms was expected across the Gofa district but thousands remain at high risk of further landslides and need to be evacuated to safe zones immediately.
António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations (UN), sent his message of condolences to the Ethiopian government following the loss of lives.
“He extends his sincere condolences to the families of the victims and to the people and Government of Ethiopia,” a spokesperson of the UN chief said.
He said the UN and its partners were working with the government, evaluating the humanitarian situation to determine the extent of the damage and assess the humanitarian needs of the affected population.
“UN agencies are dispatching food, nutrition, health and other critical supplies to help people affected by the landslides,” Guterres’ spokesperson said.
The tragedy in Ethiopia is attributed to climate change.
Africa’s second most populous country (129,8 million), it is experiencing the most severe and protracted drought in East Africa’s recent history.
The drought has left an estimated 11,8 million people facing hunger and 24 million people in need of humanitarian assistance.
– CAJ News