Deadly floods hit Central Nigeria
- Posted on Tuesday 24 July 2012 - 14:30AfricaNews Monitoring Team with files from BBCAt least 39 people have been killed in flooding in central Nigeria's Plateau state after heavy rainfall caused a dam to overflow near the city of Jos. A Red Cross spokesman said that about 200 homes, many of them made from mud, had been submerged or destroyed.
Officials say that at least 35 people are missing and that the number of dead is expected to rise.
Many people are mourning the loss of loved ones. One resident said heavy rain began to fall on Sunday evening and that many of his livestock had been washed away.
The head of the Red Cross in Plateau state, Manasie Phampe, said rescue efforts were continuing.
"Rainwater and water from the Lamingo dam which overflowed swept across several neighbourhoods in the city," he said.
"We are still searching for more bodies as many people have been declared missing."
Nigeria's National Emergency Agency has launched a relief operation.
Our correspondent says the floods have left several thousand people homeless and they are taking shelter in government buildings in the city.
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