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Heavy rains in the West African state of Niger since June have left 55 people dead and left 53,000 homeless, authorities said on Thursday.
More than 4,800 houses were damaged by floods or landslides, and nearly 900 head of cattle were lost, Colonel Bako Boubacar, head of the civil protection agency, told state radio.
The most affected regions are Maradi in the southeast, Agadez in the desert to the north and the capital Niamey, where 16 have died.
An impoverished landlocked country in the Sahel, Niger struggles with chronic aridity and heat.
The rainy season is short, usually from June to August or September, although in recent years it has been exceptionally strong.
Flooding last year killed 73 people and triggered a humanitarian crisis with 2.2 million people in need of assistance, according to the United Nations. In 2019, 57 died.
The previous toll for this year’s rainy season, released on July 31, was 35 dead and 26,532 people homeless.
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