Swath of death and destruction in wake of Sudan dam collapse
Arbaat Dam collapse washes away dozens of villages ((Photo: Sudan’s Transitional Sovereignty Council)
More than 130 people are reported to have been killed – a figure that is quite likely to rise as news unfolds – following the collapse of the Arbaat Dam, 20 kilometres north of Port Sudan, on Saturday. The exact damage and number of casualties caused by the ensuing flood are still unclear, as the dam’s collapse has left dozens of villages and small communities isolated.
A number of witnesses told Radio Dabanga that the floods led to the isolation of dozens of villages, while hundreds of people are still missing. Others are still trapped in the nearby plateaus and mountains and on the other side of the river.
There are no complete statistics on the victims and those affected, Abdullah Obshar, a leader in the Supreme Council of Beja Nazirs, reported. He told Radio Dabanga that civilians are living in poor humanitarian conditions.
As previously reported by Radio Dabanga, humanitarian convoys bound for Darfur and elsewhere in Sudan, especially via the Adré crossing at the Sudan-Chad border that was recently opened for aid, face the additional challenge of damage to essential infrastructure following unusually heavy rains in Sudan.
He explained that over 28 villages have been affected, of which only a limited number of houses remain. Most houses, schools, health centres, and public facilities were swept away. All the elderly, children, and women are missing, Obshar said.
The dam waters also swept away seven vehicles at the site of the main gate of the dam and a large number of miners who were preparing to cross west of the dam lake. Obshar confirmed that the rescue teams were able to rescue four vehicles and were able to collect several bodies and evacuate a large number of the wounded and survivors. Inventory and search operations are continuing.
Civilians lost their livestock and agricultural lands, Obshar pointed out.
Causes of dam collapse
Regarding the reasons for the collapse of the dam, the Director of Water Resources of the Red Sea State, Eng. Omar Issa Tahir, said in an audio recording that the violent floods and silt caused the dam to explode. “The floods caused the collapse of electricity poles and swept away water lines.”
“We found a number of bodies, including the bodies of miners, and the silt changed the colour of the asphalt. We do not know exactly what happened to the residents of most of the villages in Arbaat.”
Abdullah Obshar told Radio Dabanga that the heavy rains that fell west of the dam lake, Sinkat, Wad Ruwas, and the valleys that feed Arbaat since Friday led to the main road being cut off near the gate of Arbaat Dam for 12 hours on Saturday.
The dam collapsed at 2 pm on Saturday after cracks appeared, caused by the falling water. He attributed the collapse of the dam to erosion in its body, indicating that the last maintenance of the dam was in 2017.
Missing and stranded
Obshar said that a large number of children, elderly people, and women were swept away by the floods from their homes in the villages and that search teams are trying to find the missing. A large number of citizens have been stuck for three days without any food or water.
He confirmed that the rescue teams were unable to enter the dam lake on Saturday, and warned of the need to send the necessary equipment, including two helicopters for an overhead survey to determine the areas where the affected people have taken refuge in the plateaus and mountains. He pointed out that tracked vehicles were sent to connect the villages together and conduct the necessary survey for the missing, indicating that the silt accumulated in the dam lake has become a danger to the citizens.
He pointed to the efforts made by a number of organizations, calling at the same time to speed up the provision of shelter, services and drinking water that were affected by the accumulated silt in the dam lake.
He called on the government to work seriously and quickly to prepare and establish safe villages outside the dam to shelter the victims who were affected by the massive flood, and called for compensating all those affected. Noting the displacement of all villages and the destruction of agricultural and animal wealth and water wells, he called for compensating those affected.
Condolences and solidarity
The Arab Parliament offered its condolences to the people of Sudan for the deaths of dozens as a result of the collapse of the Arbaat Dam, calling for the immediate provision of support to evacuate those stranded. The Arab Parliament also expressed its full solidarity with the dear Sudanese people for the collapse of the Arbaat Dam in the Red Sea State, which caused floods that swept away villages and killed dozens in addition to those stranded on mountaintops. The Arab Parliament called for the need to provide the necessary support to assist local authorities in dealing with this humanitarian disaster, and to work urgently to evacuate those stranded to safe areas inhabited with basic needs. The Arab Parliament expressed its sincere condolences to the brotherly people of Sudan for the victims of this painful incident.
For its part, the Egyptian Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation expressed its full solidarity with Sudan following the accident resulting from the collapse of the Arbaat Dam in the Khor Arbaat Basin in the coastal Red Sea State, which is one of the main water sources feeding the city of Port Sudan, which led to floods that swept away a number of villages located around the dam, resulting in the death and injury of citizens.
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