Increase in Flood and Landslide Victims in Tanzania to 47

A senior government official in Tanzania stated that the number of victims from floods and landslides in the north of the country has risen to 47, with an additional 85 injuries following heavy rainfall. Severe flooding caused by the El Niño phenomenon and bipolar weather events in the Indian Ocean has led to the deaths of hundreds in Kenya and Somalia, displacing hundreds of thousands since the onset of the rainy season. Commissioner Queen Cindyga of the Manyara region told reporters late yesterday that search and rescue operations are ongoing in the area, with authorities fearing that some bodies may be buried in the mud. She added, "As of the evening, we have rescued 85 injured people who are still receiving treatment, and others have been discharged from the hospital. The death toll has risen to 47." Tanzanian President Samia Hassan, in a video message published online by the Ministry of Health, reported that a landslide swallowed about 100 homes in the village of Katishe in the Hanang district. She remarked, "We are very shocked by what has happened." Climate scientists say that climate change is causing more severe and frequent extreme weather events.