Thousands of people have been forced from their homes and are salvaging belongings from the floods

4 September 2009: Plan is helping children and their families affected by severe floods which have swept across Burkina Faso, killing at least 5 people and leaving 150,000 people homeless.

Over 10 inches of rainfall was reported on the capital city of Ouagadougou, the most in any 12-hour period since 1953.

Plan is coordinating relief efforts with the government and other agencies and has launched an urgent  appeal for funding to help the population.

Plan's immediate emergency response will include purchasing and distributing food, drinking water, clothing, bedding and medication.

Collapsed houses

It is estimated that about 700,000 people are affected by the floods and in the capital city of Ouagadougou 109,000 people have lost their homes and belongings. These people are being hosted in 30 sites around the city while many more are unaccounted for.

In rural areas there have been reports of dozens of collapsed houses and farms with growing crops flooded. Schools, mosques and churches are being used as temporary shelters.

Stefanie Conrad, Plan's West Africa regional communications manager based in Burkina Faso, shares her experience of the floods: “Streets have turned into rivers and where water has started to recede, there is mud and dirt. Some areas of the city have become inaccessible as bridges have collapsed,” she said.

“Many people are homeless and have lost all their property, including food stocks. Owners of small shops and businesses have lost their goods and people are trying to dry whatever is left in the open air."

Contaminated water

The infrastructure has also been affected and the city water has been turned off, as there are fears the city water system has been contaminated by the floods. Electrical power also continues to be a problem as the electricity generators were flooded and fuel is becoming short as gas station pumps cannot work without electricity.

People now fear that the rain will continue falling and as most of the soil is so saturated, the absorption level is nil which could lead to further floods.

"Everybody is watching the sky,” Stefanie said. “Heavy clouds have started to build up again and more rainfall is predicted.”