Cameroon - South-West region: Information note on floods in Limbe (24 July 2023)

Highlights

• Five persons reported dead as of 23 July in Limbe because of landslides caused by heavy rains.

• An estimated 2,000 individuals affected in several neighborhoods in Limbe 1 sub-division.

• Over 13 patients hospitalized at the Limbe sub-divisional hospital either discharged or referred to other hospitals due to the flooding of the hospital wards and offices.

• The City Council has announced the evacuation of persons in risk zones to a temporary shelter.

Context

The town of Limbe is located along the coastal area of Fako Division, South-West region of Cameroon. Limbe is characterized by a low-lying coastal plain, rising to a chain of hills with slopes of varying intensities in the northeast and east of the town, with some points as high as 362m above sea level. Within the city, small streams flow into larger drainage beds that converge into two main rivers (Limbe and Jenguele) that empty into the Atlantic Ocean. These rivers frequently overflow their banks during rainy season causing floods in the low-lying areas which are just some metres above sea level.

The hills that surround the city are made up of loose ferralitic and volcanic soils that easily disintegrate when they absorb a lot of water. The situation has been exacerbated by the high population density, inadequate drainage facilities, and poor maintenance of existing facilities. This has resulted in regular floods and simultaneous landslides in Limbe for over 10 decades, sometimes resulting in several deaths. In June 2001 the city was engulfed in heavy rains that led to a combination of floods and landslides resulting in over 70 deaths.

On 19 July 2023, heavy rains led to the death of a women and a man. They were killed by a landslide in the Upper-Mawoh neighborhood in Limbe. On 20 July, OCHA and UNFPA deployed a team to Limbe to assess the situation. The team met with administrative and municipal authorities in Limbe, but they could not visit the affected communities as the water level was high, it was still raining and there was a high risk of additional landslides. On 21 July, a second landslide was announced, resulting in another two deaths (an older woman and a baby) in the Cassava Farm neighborhood. The same day, another female adult was discovered in a decomposed in the Upper-Mawoh neighborhood in Limbe.

Fako divisional authorities including municipal authorities and humanitarian partners continue to monitor the situation. .