Recent floods have hit the Democratic Republic of Congo and neighboring countries, such as Rwanda. This disaster, which occurred two days after deadly rains in Rwanda, left at least 400 dead in South Kivu (East), according to an official report Monday, May 8, 2023.
Ces floods and these landslides claimed at least 400 lives, while 4,300 people are missing in the South Kivu region. Several houses have been destroyed and more than 3,000 people are homeless and homeless. According to the United Nations Humanitarian Agency (OCHA), roads and bridges have been split in two. Faced with these record floods, several cities and territories along the Congo River are suffering from disasters.
Somewhere in the Territory of Isangi, Province of Tshopo, the effects of the floods affect the educational plan
They hit the African continent
These floods are legion on the African continent. In the night from Tuesday to Wednesday, floods and landslides have already caused damage in the district of Rubavu, in the west and north of Rwanda. According to Deputy Government Spokesperson, Alain Mukuralinda, more than 130 people died, 5 disappeared and 77 were injured, including 36 who were still hospitalized on the morning of Thursday 04 May. The landscape is desolate: several houses are destroyed and some roads cut off. It was one of the worst disasters recorded in the country in recent years.
And article from VOA shows that East Africa regularly experiences flooding during the rainy seasons. Their intensity and frequency should continue to increase with climate change, as estimated by meteorological experts.
For good reason, in early April, a landslide caused by rain killed around twenty people in North Kivu, a neighboring Congolese province of South Kivu. Smaller floods have also been reported in the rest of the DRC, a huge country that stretches west to the Atlantic coast, the article mentioned.
The latter goes on to say that in Kikwit, for example, capital of Kwilu province (west), a flood caused by a rise in the Kwilu river has just killed two people, according to civil society, and caused material damage at the port, where tons of maize and cassava were damaged.
And concluded by recalling that in December, more than 120 people perished in the capital Kinshasa in floods and landslides caused there also by torrential rain.
Scientific explanations
Scientific data and climate model simulations show an acceleration of the water cycle in conjunction with global warming. A recent IPCC report shows that since the 1950s, scientists have noticed a global warming trend. According to them, this warming trend is due to the human expansion of the greenhouse effect, which occurs when the atmosphere traps heat from the Earth.
Thus, measurements of terrestrial precipitation reveal a trend of increasing precipitation since the middle of the 20th century. The data show, however, that there is spatial variation, with an increase in precipitation at high latitudes and a decrease in tropical Africa and southern Asia.
More recently, measurements of variation in sea salinity confirmed the amplification of water cycle. The importance of evaporation in areas where it is significant has increased, while areas with high precipitation receive more rain.
Therefore, the climate change should result in an intensification of the phenomena of droughts and floods throughout the world, signs of the acceleration of the hydrological cycle.
Man, amplifier of the phenomenon
Human activities, known as anthropogenic, modify the Earth’s natural greenhouse. Humans burn fossil fuels like coal and oil, which are a major source of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere.
Deforestation has also increased concentrations of greenhouse gases. Land is thus cleared for agriculture, industry and other human activities. If deforestation has less impact than fossil fuels, the amount of deforestation always increases.
A key factor
I cannot end this article without mentioning this key element, the water cycle. The water cycle is made up of four stages: evaporation, saturation, condensation and precipitation. And, as it is a cycle, each depends on evaporation. However, the warmer it is, the greater the capacity of the air to hold water. Since air masses form, reform and move rapidly, it is not because there is more evaporation in a given place that there will be more rain in this same place.
Globally, climate change causes an acceleration of the water cycle. The most difficult thing today is to calculate the extent of this acceleration. It is also complicated to predict regional disparities. Added to this is the dimension of the seasons: some places will see more precipitation over the year but may experience water shortages during the summer and flooding at other times.