Torrential rains that swept across Angola in recent days have killed around 40 people with at least nine missing, authorities said in an updated toll Tuesday.The storm triggered flash floods on Saturday that inundated streets and damaged infrastructure in the capital Luanda and the central city of Benguela on the Atlantic coast.
Thirteen people were confirmed dead in Luanda province, where the capital city is located, and another five were missing, the civil protection authority said in a statement.
Another 26 lost their lives in Benguela province and four were missing, it said.
Media reports cited authorities saying separately that at least six people had lost their lives in the Cuanza Sul and Malanje provinces.
The downpour had caused more than 600 houses to collapse in Luanda and Benguela, and flooded more than 9,500, the civil protection authority said. More than 51,000 people were affected.
The situation was returning to normal with rescuers pumping water from flooded homes and streets, and providing food and drinking water, it said.
Heavy downpours are not unusual in southern Africa during the rainy season, but scientists say human-caused climate change is increasing the probability, length and severity of such extreme weather events.
