At least 25 people have died following flash floods in Yemen’s Al-Mahwit region, international media reported quoting local health sources..
The floods, which struck Al-Mahwit after more than 24 hours of heavy rain, led to the collapse of three dams and the destruction of numerous homes in the Malhan district on Tuesday.
Rescue operations are ongoing, with several villagers still reported missing, a source told Xinhua news agency.
Earlier this month, severe rain and flash floods in Hodeidah and Hajjah regions resulted in 45 deaths and damaged over 12,000 homes, as reported by local health authorities and Xinhua news agency.
The WHO has raised concerns about the risk of disease outbreaks due to contaminated water and inadequate sanitation during the rainy season in Yemen, which is already struggling with a prolonged civil war that began in 2014 when the Houthi group took control of several northern provinces, forcing the Yemeni government to flee Sanaa.
Yemen, which faces recurrent severe flooding due to heavy rains exacerbated by climate change, has seen 36 fatalities in Hodeida province, nine in Ibb, eight in Marib, and seven in Taiz since July, as reported by the UN humanitarian agency OCHA on August 19.
