Landslide Disaster Leaves 34 Dead

At least 34 persons have been reported dead as a result of heavy rain and floods in Gakenke district which also left 400 houses.

Other reports indicate that the heavy rains, this May 8, 2016 left at least a total of 49 dead with other victims counted from Ngororero, Rubavu and Muhanga districts.

Gakenke district vice mayor for social affairs, Catherine Uwimana said that Minazi, Muyongwe, Coko, Mugunga, Gakenke, Mataba sectors were affected by the landslides as a result of heavy rains.

“At least 19 people were injured and taken to hospital, leaving hectares of plantations and roads destroyed especially the Musanze-Kigali highway” Uwimana said.

Statistics from the housing authority department for human resettlement show that of the 48,000 residents living in identified high risk zones, only 42,000 residents were relocated and 6,000 are expected to be relocated this year.

Among the 6,000 Rwandans who still live in disaster-prone areas some of them have not been given practical options despite them being in the line of danger.

Antoine Ruvebana, the permanent secretary at the Ministry of Disaster Management and Refugee Affairs, promised Government support.

“We sympathise with the families of the victims. We have deployed a team at the incident scene to assess the damage and provide first aid,” he said, adding that they will be giving them basic household needs.

He urged those who live in risky areas to relocate.

Since January, rain has been persistent throughout the country, causing deaths and destroying infrastructure. But this is the most deadly incident since then, according to the Ministry of Disaster Management and Refugees Affairs.