Highlights: 401 dead and several wounded, this is the balance sheet of the recent floods of the various villages of the territory of Kalehe in the province of South Kivu. The government delegation gave this assessment Monday in Bukavu without giving more details on the number of missing. "I lost 20 members of my family! We are waiting to see if we will find more bodies," laments Delphin Habamungu, in his thirties. Since Saturday, more than 200 bodies have been buried. But a hundred others are still to be buried.

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Floods in eastern DRC: In Kalehe, survivors are still searching for missing relatives

Red Cross volunteers wrap the bodies of flood victims in Nyamukubi on May 6, 2023. AFP - GLODY MURHABAZI

Text by: RFI Follow

3 min

401 dead and several wounded, this is the balance sheet of the recent floods of the various villages of the territory of Kalehe in the province of South Kivu. The government delegation gave this assessment Monday in Bukavu without giving more details on the number of missing. But in Kalehe entire families hope to find theirs.

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On this port of Nyamukubi, children and young people gaze at the moon late at night, they have lost everything, reports our special envoy in Kalehe, William Basimike. "All this place you see here, from Bushushu to Nyamukubi, even here in Lwano were just houses, but the disaster took everything," laments Delphin Habamungu, in his thirties. My house, my mother-in-law and my two sisters-in-law. So, we stayed close to the port in shelter. We haven't eaten for five days, there's no drinking water. We risk dying of hunger and thirst."

On the shores of Lake Kivu everything is black, but Asumani Rugwiza, 43, still has his eyes riveted on Lake Kivu, he waits. "I lost 20 members of my family! We are waiting to see if we will find more bodies. We found some bodies on the water, we were told that other bodies floated in Idjwi Island, bodies from here in Chirakara, and Nyamukubi/Centre," he said.

Fear of epidemics

In the middle of the large stones carried by the waters, some families have made straw huts and are trying to shelter there while waiting for help. The government delegation delivered food and coffins on Monday, and is expected in Kalehe on Tuesday. Since Saturday, more than 200 bodies have been buried. But a hundred others are still to be buried. A situation that raises fears of the appearance of diseases.

The government team arrived to take stock of the general situation. See how to find our missing compatriots. Unfortunately, the more days pass, the less hope there is.

Patrick Muyaya, Congolese government spokesperson

Pascal Mulegwa

I was at the scene of the tragedy, I saw that there are still bodies not yet recovered. Normally, you have to take out the bodies and bury them otherwise it will not work. After if there are rains, they will carry away the sand and the earth so we will risk having the body already in a state of putrefaction. We really need to have a team that will help search for the bodies so that people are buried with dignity," says Jean-Paul Cikwane, a doctor at Panzi Hospital in Bukavu.

Several rescue teams are at work trying to find the missing people. Vincent de Paul is spokesperson for the Red Cross, in direct contact with his colleagues in South Kivu province. "Several bodies have been found in the mud and our teams are also continuing to search the rubble for other bodies that are believed to still be buried," he said.

► Read also: National day of mourning in DRC after deadly floods in South Kivu

According to the Red Cross, health centres in Bukavu are overwhelmed, necessitating the deployment of doctors from other regions to support the government's response.

The needs are enormous. Imagine that these rivers washed away large brick houses.

Floods in eastern DRC: In Kalehe, survivors are still searching for missing relatives

Floods in eastern DRC: In Kalehe, survivors are still searching for missing relatives

Fear of epidemics

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