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Video: ‘Flooding flattened houses and dissolved them into the ground’

Countries
Niger
Sources
ShelterBox
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As communities in Niger continue to recover from flooding that took place last summer, we hear from response team volunteer David Hatcher about the challenges of providing aid in the West African country.

In August 2012, Niger received more than half a year’s rainfall in just one night and experienced the worst flooding in living memory. The River Niger burst its banks and the rising waters destroyed 14,000 homes, along with 7,000 crop fields, leaving people without shelter or food supplies.

ShelterBox response team members, including David Hatcher, worked for more than two months to reach communities that had been devastated by the floods.

In many places, homes made of mud bricks were completely flattened and then dissolved into the ground, leaving nothing left for people to build with.

David’s video shows how, two months on from the disaster, recovery was slow. Temporary shelters, made of mud and straw, were very overcrowded and left people vulnerable to insects and the elements. The structures not only leaked when it rained, but it provided no protection from the 40°C heat.

David said: ‘I was absolutely devastated to see badly sun burned children. I wish we could do more, which is why getting the ShelterBox message out is so important'.

The ShelterBox tents that David and the rest of the response team distributed, not only gave families a place to call their own, but also gave essential shelter from the harsh weather conditions.

Sadly, the country continues to experience extreme weather and many communities along the River Niger are still recovering from flooding that took place last summer, including those in the district of Niamey where David was distributing aid.

Since then, ShelterBox has been working with the development agency Plan to help displaced communities in the districts of Niamey, Tillabery and Dosso and has already provided ShelterBoxes to almost 600 families.