Uganda declares state of emergency

Uganda declared a state of emergency in the worst flood-affected areas of the country today, as humanitarian workers tried desperately to reach villages that have been cut off by water.

Uganda is among the nations hardest-hit by floods that have swept across 17 countries in Africa in recent weeks.

At least 200 people have been killed across the continent, and hundreds of thousands displaced.

In Uganda, floods killed 21 people since August, said deputy police spokeswoman Judith Nabakoba.

“We expected the rains which have been falling since early August to ease off but they are getting worse and we are seeing more and more people affected,” Relief and Disaster Preparedness Minister Tarsis Kabwegyere said today.

A state of emergency allows the government to divert money allocated for other programs to the floods.

The government also said it hopes the declaration will spur international help.

“I’ve lost everything,” Martha Amongin, 56, said in Magoro, a town in eastern Uganda that is surrounded by floodwater and has become inaccessible by road. “Life is going to be bad.”