KANO, Nigeria

Severe floods have wreaked havoc across central and west African countries, including Nigeria and Niger, affecting hundreds of thousands of people and causing widespread destruction.

In Nigeria, over a million individuals across 15 states have been impacted, with the northern and northeastern regions suffering the most. Entire communities, health facilities, schools, and farmlands have been submerged. Borno state in the northeast, already known for insurgency, has seen 400,000 people displaced by floods. Residents in Maiduguri now face increased risks of malaria and waterborne diseases, such as cholera.

Heavy rainfall on Sept. 10 caused the Alau Dam in Borno to overflow, leading to widespread flooding. Homes, markets, fields, livestock, and health facilities were heavily affected. Authorities have set up 30 temporary displacement sites, mainly in schools, but they are facing challenges with inadequate sanitation and clean drinking water.

Artificial intelligence (AI) experts like Musa Abdullahi Sufi, from the Maryam Abacha American University of Niger, have emphasized the potential of AI in flood forecasting.

Sufi explained that AI can analyze precipitation and water level data to predict future floods with high precision, helping mitigate their impact. He added that a model using deep feed-forward neural networks is being developed to predict floods in Nigeria.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has stepped up its humanitarian efforts, providing increased support to flood victims across West Africa.

Flooding has severely impacted countries such as Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria, resulting in hundreds of deaths and widespread infrastructure damage.

Patrick Youssef, the ICRC's director for Africa, highlighted the compounded challenges in a region already struggling with conflict and violence.

“These severe floods add a complicating layer to a region where conflict and violence already make life fragile for thousands of families,” Youssef said.

“Our teams see first-hand how life in vulnerable communities is made so much harder when violence and climate shocks combine.”

In Niger, all eight regions have been affected by flooding since May, with the cities of Maradi, Zinder, and Tahoua seeing the most devastation.

At least 265 people have died, and more than 400,000 have been displaced. Rescue officials reported widespread destruction of homes, bridges, and roads, leaving many at risk of waterborne diseases and electrocution from exposed wires.

Government figures show that 85,260 households and 649,184 individuals have been affected, with 68,955 houses and 110 classrooms destroyed.