Floods and landslides kill at least 140 in Congolese capital Kinshasa

Kinshasa — At least 141 people have been killed in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) capital Kinshasa after heavy rains unleashed floods and caused landslides, a government document seen by Reuters showed on Tuesday.

Entire suburbs were flooded with muddy water, and houses and roads damaged by sinkholes, including the N1 highway that connects Kinshasa to the port of Matadi.

The prime minister’s office said in a statement that the N1 could be closed for three to four days.

Many of those who died were in hillside areas which were hit by landslides on Tuesday after heavy rain.

The death toll was compiled by the head of the migration office, which is part of the interior ministry.

The toll may rise. Health minister Jean-Jacques Mbungani Mbanda said the ministry had counted 141 dead, but that the number needed to be cross-checked with other departments.

Images posted on Twitter by the DRC government spokesperson Patrick Muyaya showed a major road that appeared to have subsided into a deep chasm, with crowds viewing the damage.

“On the National Road 1 there is a big hole. Only pedestrians can pass. We do not understand how the water cut the road,” said resident Gabriel Mbikolo.

Once a fishing village on the banks of the Congo River, Kinshasa has grown into one of Africa’s largest megacities, with a population of about 15-million.

Poorly regulated rapid urbanisation has made the city increasingly vulnerable to flash floods after intense rains, which have become more frequent due to climate change.

At least 39 people died in Kinshasa in 2019 when torrential rain flooded low-lying districts and some buildings and roads collapsed.

In addition to damaged infrastructure, each day of flooding costs households a combined $1.2m due to the large-scale transport disruption, according to a 2020 World Bank paper.

Reuters