2,082 houses destroyed by rain in Sudanese refugee camp

Thousands of homes collapsed and schools were damaged in camp Mile for Sudanese refugees in eastern Chad due to heavy rains that struck the region on Thursday.Sheikh Abbakar Abdullah Al Doum Tajouri, spokesman for the camp’s refugees, told Radio Dabanga that “torrential rains led to the destruction of 2,082 houses. In addition, eight schools were damaged, including desks, books, pamphlets, and stationery. Rains also uprooted 178 trees.”According to the sheikh, the affected families are currently living in the open. He has asked the UN High Commissioner for Refugees and other agencies to expedite the provision of tents, tarpaulins, blankets, and food.Heavy rainfall also injured two people, including an elderly woman, in refugee camp Kariari in eastern Chad.A sheikh told Radio Dabanga that 800 houses were destroyed by rain and that a number of cattle were killed by floods that “washed the region.”He is calling upon humanitarian organisations to expedite the provision of aid to dozens of families which do not have shelter, food, or medicine.File photo (OCHA)Related: Mother dies in Chad, classrooms collapse in Darfur downpours (18 August 2013)