The annual rains have left a “trail of destruction” across Somalia, according to a United Nations spokesman, citing flooded residences and farmland as well as the closure of health facilities.

“According to preliminary estimates by our partners, more than 460,000 people have been affected, including nearly 219,000 men, women, and children who have been displaced as a result of this (flood),” said Stephane Dujarric in a statement.

At least five persons, including three minors, have died as a result of the flooding, according to Mohamed Moalim of the Somalia National Disaster Management Agency.

Extensive water damage has been reported by the UN in central Somalia.

The devastation is most severe in the Hiiraan region of the Hirshabelle state in central Somalia. Thousands of families have been displaced in Beledweyne, which has the greatest population density in the region. The Shabelle river, which flows through the village, overflowed its banks due to excessive rainfall.

If the rains continue in Somalia and the Ethiopian highlands, “we estimate that up to 1.6 million people could be impacted, with more than 600,000 displaced,” Dujarric said.

Residents reported that rising water levels in Beledweyne forced the closure of numerous vital facilities, including government offices and the primary hospital. According to some, the inundation was the worst they had ever witnessed.

Abdifitah Ahmed, a resident of Beledweyne, stated, “I had a difficult time walking this morning because of the amount of water.” As can be seen, the situation is deteriorating as the quantity of water rises. According to another resident, Hussein Yusuf, the property damage is extensive. “This flood is larger than any flooding in recent memory that has ever occurred in this region,” he said.

Multiple crises confront one of the world’s weakest nations, located in the Horn of Africa. In Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia, there is an ongoing insurgency by Islamic extremist militants opposed to the federal government. Drought conditions exist in other regions of Somalia.