Heavy Rains in Lake Chad Basin Leave Hundreds Dead Across Countries

At least 621 people have been killed and thousands more displaced by floods around Lake Chad, which sits at the border region of several countries in Central and West Africa. Since early September, parts of Cameroon, Chad and Nigeria have experienced some of their heaviest rains in decades.

Heavy rains have overwhelmed local systems, Justin Sheffield, a hydrologist at the University of Southampton, U.K., who helped develop flood-monitoring systems for the Lake Chad Basin, told Mongabay by phone. Climate change and difficulties in cross-border waterway coordination have worsened the situation.

Here’s how the floods are affecting the Lake Chad Basin’s hardest-hit countries:

Chad

Floods in southern Chad killed at least 340 people and destroyed more than 160,000 homes and 259,000 hectares (640,000 acres) of farmland as of Sept. 10.

More flooding is expected in the coming weeks as the Chari River, Lake Chad’s main tributary, swells with rainwater. On Sept. 16, water levels in the Chari reached 6.6 meters (21.5 feet), 35% above normal. By early October, they could reach 8.6 m (28 ft), surpassing the levels of the devastating 2022 floods, an official hydrological report said.

The rising waters are worrying, Tob-Ro N’Dilbé, coordinator of Chad’s Virtual Flood Observatory, wrote in a local news outlet. The phenomenon is part of the effects of climate change, reinforced by human action degrading the environment day by day, he added.

Nigeria

Heavy rains in Nigeria left at least 269 people dead and displaced 70% of the residents of the city of Maiduguri in northeastern Borno state as of Sept. 9. Officials estimate up to a million people may be affected.

It’s been widely reported that the Alau Dam on the Ngadda River, another tributary of Lake Chad, collapsed and caused the flooding. However, state officials maintain the dam didn’t collapse, but breached because of excessive rainfall.

Some experts say poor management played a role either way. “This is not just a natural disaster. It’s a failure of governance,” Toyin Ajeigbe, a water engineer, told local media. “The signs were there, but nothing was done. Now, the people are paying the price.”

As floodwaters recede and residents return to their homes, local health professionals worry about a spike in waterborne diseases, including cholera.

Cameroon

In Cameroon’s Far North region, intense rain through August and September caused landslides and flash floods that killed 11 people and displaced 180,000, mostly in the cities of Yagoua and Maroua.

The floods destroyed 40,000 homes, officials told local media. Entire neighborhoods, including 198 schools, were submerged, and more than 1,100 livestock died. Fifty truckloads of emergency supplies for flood victims were dispatched on Sept 18.

“This year’s floods have been particularly devastating,” said Paul Atanga Nji, the minister for territorial administration. “Weather forecasters had predicted that there would be a lot of flooding, but we had no idea how bad it would get.”

Banner image of flooding in Maiduguri, Nigeria courtesy of Adam Bukar Bababe