Angola rains cause four deaths in last 72 hours

At least four people have died in the past 72 hours in Angola as heavy rains hit the country and flooding of homes and public and private infrastructure was reported, firefighters said on Tuesday.

Deaths were recorded in the provinces of Luanda, two of whom drowned, as well as in Benguela and Huila due to electrical discharges, said Félix Domingos, spokesman for Angola’s National Civil Protection and Fire Protection Service.

In a conversation with Lusa, a representative of the fire service noted that intense rainfall throughout the country, accompanied by strong winds and thunderstorms, caused more damage in the provinces of Lunda Sur, Cabinda, Namibe, Kwanza Norte, Bengo, Cuanza Sud, Benguela, Huila, Cuando Cubango and Luanda.

“Here we highlight the provinces of Kwanza Sur, Kwanza Norte, Lunda Sur and Luanda as those that present the picture with infrastructure at greater risk due to the rains,” said Felix Domingos.

The official also stressed that a significant number of houses were flooded due to the rains, which did not spare some infrastructure such as churches and schools, resulting in several streets being flooded and impassable.

He said work to study the effects of the rains was still ongoing through provincial civil protection commissions, given that there were reports of families still searching for their loved ones.

“But this situation should always be linked to what is the totality of our rainfall assessment efforts because we cannot link any other situation (of deaths) here that is directly related to the rains,” he explained.

Containing ravines, pumping water from overflowing reservoirs, and helping move some families in flooded areas are just some of the actions being taken by firefighters.

Felix Domingos also recalled that the National Institute of Meteorology and Geophysics forecasts rain in the coming hours, calling on citizens to comply with the measures of the authorities to avoid more precipitation.