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Southern
Somalia is affected by floods in "relatively limited but very
fragile areas", said UN Humanitarian and Resident Coordinator
for Somalia, Randolph Kent, after a rapid flood assessment
conducted on Tuesday by a team of UN officials.
Exceptional
rains during the past few weeks had caused river floods in
southern Somalia, and flash floods in the north.
Kent
said some people had encamped outside the flooded area and
had been forced to move to a different site - "which means
the water is still rising".
An estimated
600-700 families had been affected and had built small temporary
shelters, he said.
The southern
town of "Mombasa" was the only significantly affected community.
Kent said
there was now an "excellent opportunity" to start preventative
measures, concentrating on building up embankments and dredging
canals and water catchment pools.
He said
it was important to monitor water movement and rainfall in
the Ethiopian highlands, which feeds into Somalia's southern
rivers.
UN agencies
are bringing in mosquito nets, medicine and shelter material.
Northeast Somalia - particularly the Sanaag, Nugal and Nudug
regions - have experienced flash floods, which have washed
over roads and hindered trade.
Livestock
had also been lost to the flash floods, according to a UN
press release.
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