The organization responsible for managing the Senegal River has triggered the orange alert, indicating that the flow rates recorded in recent days are comparable to those observed during the exceptional flood of 1999.
The Senegal River has caused countless damage in recent days to the riverside populations of Senegal and Mali. The latter remain worried because the winter season has not yet ended in these countries. While the authorities sent rescue teams, the Organization for the Development of the Senegal River (OMVS) activated its “orange vigilance”, indicating that significant rainfall could occur at any time.
« It is expected for the day of October 15, 2024, in addition to the flows coming from uncontrolled tributaries, flow forecasts of 796 m³/s on the Bakoye (Oualia station), 1,464 m³/s on the Falémé (station of Gourbassi) and around 1,200 m³/s on the Bafing (Manantali, current level: 208.28 m IGN) », Specified the organization in a press release on Monday. The Omvs manages this watercourse of more than 1,700 kilometers shared by four West African countries: Guinea, Mali, Mauritania and Senegal.
The Omvs added that current flows are similar to those observed during the exceptional flood of 1999. Thus, the alert levels will be exceeded at all stations in the valley and delta of the Senegal River and the floods will continue in areas usually subject to flooding.
This Monday, the alert level recorded a drop to 9.65 m in the Malian town of Kayes, unlike Bakel (Senegal) where it reached 11.53 m. The trend could approach 12 m this Tuesday, according to the Omvs. The seriousness of the situation motivated the trip, on Monday, of several ministerial authorities to this Senegalese department to support the populations affected by the floods, while the government presented a new framework for public policies.
« I came to express the compassion of the President of the Republic and the entire government in these difficult times and to reassure the population about the measures taken to provide them with maximum assistance. », declared the Minister of the Interior, Jean-Baptiste Tine, accompanied in Bakel by his colleague from Family and Solidarity, Maimouna Dièye. “ Starting tomorrow morning (Tuesday), convoys of food, particularly drinking water, will arrive and be transported to the most needy areas. “, he told the Senegalese Press Agency (APS).
President Bassirou Diomaye Faye also expressed, on Monday, his “compassion” and “solidarity” to the local populations hit hard by the floods caused by the flooding of the Senegal River. He promised to make a two-day visit to the Kédougou region, in the east of the country, starting Friday, to bring “comfort” to his compatriots.
ODL/SF/ac/APA
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