Heavy rains kill at least 25 people in Angola

At least 25 people have been killed in heavy rains and flooding in the southwestern Angolan province of Namibe, a report said on Sunday.

"We flew over some areas and we learned that the situation was serious," Home Affairs Minister Sebastiao Martins told the Angola Press news agency after visiting at the weekend.

The government has not released estimates on the damage caused in the Atlantic coast area about 750 km (460 miles) south of the capital Luanda.

According to a 2009 Angola, Namibia and Zambia reports, floods are a continuing natural disaster which began in early March 2009 and have resulted in the deaths of at least 131 people and have otherwise affected around 445,000 people.

There are fears that the flood crisis in this neighboring countries could exacerbate diseases already present in the area, particularly cholera and malaria.

Cholera is transmitted through contaminated water and is linked to poor hygiene, overcrowding and inadequate sanitation. Though it can be treated easily, cholera is a major killer in developing countries.

This is a troublesome situation as health authorities have previously warned about Cholera outbreak which could take as many lives of people in the region. UNICEF once emphasized on how food insecurity could provoke up to 100,000 severely malnourished children, given the high cost of food, localized rain failures and flooding. Including the ongoing cholera outbreak which resulted in 9,397 cases with 222 deaths according to a 2008 statistics.

Source:
Reuters,"Heavy rains kill at least 25 people in Angola", accessed March 7, 2011

Australian floods: Clean-up begins in Brisbane

Regions of Queensland (left) have begun re-emerging from the floodwaters, as Brisbane started a mass clean-up following the deluge that has swamped thousands of homes over the past few days.

As the water receded, putrid mud and debris was left covering much of the city, and many were tentatively returning to their homes to survey the damage following one of Australia's worst natural disasters.

"There is a lot of heartache and grief as people start to see for the first time what has happened to their homes and their streets," Queensland state premier, Anna Bligh (right), said.

"In some cases, we have street after street after street where every home has been inundated to the roof level."

The flooding across Australia's north-east has so far caused 25 deaths, and another 55 people remain missing.

There is still concern that officials will find more bodies when they are able to reach towns hit by flash flooding (left) on Monday. Most of those missing are from Toowoomba, a city west of Brisbane in the Lockyer valley, where a sudden downpour caused a flood likened to an inland tsunami.

Police commissioner Bob Atkinson they may never be able to find everyone swept away by the torrent.(Right: rescue workers pull cars from flooding)

"We would certainly hope they would find them all," Atkinson said. "Regrettably, we could not exclude completely the possibility that some may never be found."

Military helicopters (left) endeavored to reach those stranded today to provide food, clothing and supplies as health officials warned residents to throw away anything that had touched the contaminated waters.

Throughout Brisbane many reported a highly toxic smell of mud and debris spreading through the area.

"What the city has to prepare itself for ... is the unbearable stench," Bligh said. "The smell of it is just unspeakable." (Right: Brisbane flooding)

While power has been restored to 170,000 homes in Brisbane, around 66,000 homes across south-east Queensland remain without electricity.

The prime minister, Julia Gillard (left), doubled the number of defense personnel involved in the recovery effort to 1,200, which is the largest deployment for a natural disaster since Cyclone Tracy hit Darwin in 1974.

"There's a lot of dirt, a lot of filth, a lot of mess that needs to be cleaned up," Gillard said. "We've been through some very difficult days and there's still a lot to go through in the weeks and months that lie ahead." (Right: Major roads still flooded in Brisbane)

Source:
The Guardian,"Australian floods: Clean-up begins in Brisbane", by Lee Glendinning, accessed January 13, 2011