Aid groups struggle to reach stranded Sudanese in flood disaster

Communication cut off and many areas still inaccessible after dam collapse that destroyed dozens of villages

A survivor harnessed to a rope is helped to climb a wall following floods in Sudan's Red Sea State. Reuters

Aid shipments for tens of thousands of people affected by the collapse of Sudan's Arbaat Dam are proving to be far short of what is needed as the extent of the disaster becomes clearer, a Unicef relief officer told The National.

The dam's collapse on Sunday adds to Sudan's humanitarian crisis after more than 16 months of civil war that has claimed more than 40,000 lives, displaced 12 million people and pushed some areas to the brink of famine.

The dam is located about 40 kilometres north-west of Port Sudan, the country's main conduit for international trade that now serves as a hub for humanitarian operations after the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Suppourt Forces began fighting in April last year.

Its collapse after weeks of heavy rain caused at least 30 deaths, displaced tens of thousands and levelled dozens of villages. However, the real toll is expected to be much higher as authorities, NGOs and international relief organisations gather more information, according to Monib Mohamed, a Unicef public health officer and a team leader with Addition for Disaster Assistance and Development (ADD), a Sudanese NGO.

“The suddenness of the dam’s collapse and the fact that the affected villages are spread out over a large area has made collecting accurate data very difficult. We are working to provide an accurate count of the dead, injured and displaced,” Mr Mohamed told The National. “Unfortunately, many families are still reported missing and most of the victims identified so far belong to vulnerable groups, including the elderly.”

The UN estimated that around 50,000 people living on the western side of the dam have been severely affected, with the impact on the eastern side still being assessed.

Heavy rain has continued since Sunday, causing flooding that has made rescue operations difficult and added to the chaos as people search for loved ones, Mr Mohamed said after leading a team across flood waters to the Hadalweib area on Wednesday.

“We found the families there in a dire state – there is no trace left of their homes or villages. Even the trees have been uprooted by the floods,” he said.

“On our way, we encountered people desperately searching along the flood path for a four-year-old child who went missing on the first day of the disaster. It was heartbreaking.”

Drinking flood water

The UN said that a rescue helicopter was urgently needed to reach areas cut off by flooding. Residents of remote villages had fled to mountain areas around Port Sudan, while the floods had also damaged electricity and telecommunication infrastructure, making it difficult to reach or locate survivors.

Despite the difficulties, ADD, along with other local and international relief organisations, has managed to deliver food, medicine and 1,000 shelter kits, he said.

“Each kit contains essential items such as a full cooking set, three mattresses, three blankets, two water containers, a bucket, a solar-powered lamp, two mosquito nets, and a tarpaulin. They are designed to be portable and easily accessible to the beneficiaries,” Mr Mohamed said.

Saudi Arabia's King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre, which has been working with ADD in Sudan since 2022, sent 10 aid lorries, 1,000 food baskets and 1,000 shelter kits to villages around the dam, a representative told The National.

Mr Mohamed said the lack of clean drinking water was a major concern after at least 84 bore wells collapsed, and also the risk of stings from scorpions carried by the floods into populated areas.

“The most critical issue is the contamination of drinking water. The affected people are currently forced to drink flood water mixed with silt, which is highly unhealthy,” he said. “There is an urgent need for clean water supplies, anti-venom for scorpions, emergency lighting, and temporary shelters.”

However, ADD’s stocks of relief items would run out by Saturday, he said, by which time the real impact of the dam collapse will have become clearer.

“Every hour, the needs are increasing, and we are under immense pressure to provide relief to both conflict and flood-affected populations, making it difficult to prioritise one over the other,” he said.

Humanitarian access to conflict-affected populations has been a long-standing problem. The warring factions have so far only agreed to allow unobstructed aid shipments coming through the Adre crossing, a humanitarian corridor in western Sudan on the border with Chad. Two other crossings, an SAF-controlled one in the north and an RSF-controlled one in the south, remain disputed by either side.