HEAVY downpours have continued wreaking havoc across the country amid reported deaths, transport disruption, houses’ destruction and forced closure of schoolsReports that the ‘Daily News’ team has gathered indicate that floods have disrupted transportation in various areas, leading to temporary closure of some roads.
Speaking to some city residents, Mr Makonda said the situation was tense and asked parents to take care of their children. He said at least seven people were already confirmed dead, asking heads of schools in the region to consider closing schools temporarily for the safety of students and teachers. “I ask heads of schools to consider closing schools temporarily for our children to be safe...under this situation, anything can happen.
Even school buses can be swept away by speeding water, therefore the safest way is to let children stay at home,” he said.From Arusha, MARC NKWAME reports that a posh property, the Lush Garden Hotel at Kwa-Idd area, on the outskirts of the city, was submerged in water following the heavy downpours that pounded many parts of the region. At the famous hotel and conference facility, beds were floating in rooms,
kitchen submerged as water clogged halls and basements, with the supervisor, Mr Joshua Ole Supoi, admitting that they have to start afresh because everything has been destroyed. In another incident, an unidentified lady aged between 20 and 25 years, was swept by floods at Majengo-Chini area in Arusha and according to eye witness Jumanne Rajabu, the dead body was just spotted in stagnant water, with the possibility of the deceased being swept from somewhere else and deposited at Majengo.
The body awaits identification at the Mount Meru Hospital. At Olosipa Ward, near Sakina Azimio, over 20 families have been rendered homeless due to water, mud and debris filling their homes. The Ten-Cell leader at the area, Mr David Mollel said many of the affected families have been accommodated by relatives, friends and local schools. More flooding incidences were reported at Maji-ya-Chai area in Meru District as well as Kwa-Mrombo and Muriet areas.
In Karatu, water overflew over a bridge at Rhotia, obstructing communication for several hours while floods also affected parts of Mang’ola and Mbulu-Mbulu wards, destroying homes, crops and killing livestock. In Morogoro, Regional Police Commander (RPC) Ulrich Matei said the heavy rains have affected infrastructure especially rough roads, with some bridges swept away in various parts of the municipality. Fortunately, he said by yesterday evening no death had been reported to his office though there were reports of water surrounding people’s residences in many areas. “We are safe.
No death so far but our infrastructure have been badly destroyed,” said the RPC, adding that bridges were swept in Malinyi and Kilosa districts. “We are trying to communicate with the authority in the areas to arrange for immediate solution,” said RPC Matei. From Zanzibar, ABDALLAH MSUYA reports that the rains have triggered floods in some parts of Urban-West region, rendering over 100 families homeless, according to authorities. “Some of the roads to the municipality have been closed and many houses are partly submerged,”
Deputy Principal Secretary in the Second Vice-President’s Office Abdalla Mitawi said here yesterday, noting that different safety measures were being taken to protect and rescue people. He said the survey conducted on Sunday showed that there were still no casualties but water has affected house properties, “It is unfortunate that people have been forced out of their homes...we still advise them to quit the flood prone areas.” Urban West Regional Commissioner Ayoub Mohamed Mahmoud pleaded with residents to take safety measures, including vacating areas that are frequently hit by floods
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