Storm Destroys 1000 Refugee Homes In Nigeria

At least 4,300 people have been affected
by violent storms that swept the state of
Borno, the
heart of the eight-year jihadist
insurrection, said the International
Organisation for Migration (IOM) after
assessing conditions in 44 camps for
displaced people in the state.






“Rain are just beginning and they will last
for three or four months,” Henry Kwenin,
an emergency coordinator for the IOM
told AFP.



The region has been devastated by eight
years of conflict, with the majority of
roads inaccessible for security reasons.



The conflict between the army and Boko
Haram jihadists has led to over 20,000
deaths and displacing 2.6
million people since 2009.



Several hundred thousand people have
fled to the capital of the region, Maiduguri.



“The number one priority is to reinforce
the shelters, to build adequate drainage
systems,
and safe places in camps where people
can gather in case of violent storms,” Mr
Kwenin added.



The storms came with powerful winds
damaging precarious structures in Jere,
Kaga, Konduga and Maiduguri, killing one
person, the IOM said.



“It began with a sandstorm which lasted
for an hour and was followed by a heavy
downpour
which continued for the next two hours,”
said a resident of l Pompomari, a district
in Maiduguri.



“Our neighbourhood has little trees to
break the wind and this makes our
houses vulnerable to
windstorms.”



According to the UN Office for the
Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, 5.2
million people could need life-saving food
aid in three northeast states from June to
August.



But lack of funding is forcing aid agencies
to cut feeding programs in the northeast
Nigeria, the UN said last month, warning
of growing pressure
on resources as refugees return.



The World Food Program has said nearly
two million people were living on the
brink of famine
in the remote region.



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