CAMEROON-DEMOLITIONS Flood-hit Cameroon to demolish low-lying urban homes.

Record ID: 148061

  • Title: CAMEROON-DEMOLITIONS Flood-hit Cameroon to demolish low-lying urban homes.
  • Date: 8th July 2015
  • Summary: DOUALA, CAMEROON (RECENT) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF CRANE DEMOLISHING HOMES POLICE LOOKING ON HOUSE BEING DEMOLISHED POLICE CLEARING DEBRIS AFTER HOUSE DEMOLITION PEOPLE REMOVING THEIR BELONGINGS FROM DEMOLISHED HOUSES (SOUNDBITE)(French) MBAYIM JOSEPH, RESIDENT SAYING: "If they had taken time to repair the drains, then we wouldn't have had water flooding the streets. This happ
  • Embargoed: 23rd July 2015 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Cameroon
  • Country: Cameroon
  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVACGDCTB7QNM8BPV08R7QSLM9IE
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: The demolition of houses in the popular Douala V, a settlement in Cameroon's economic capital, Douala continues to leave hundreds who have called the neighbourhood home for years, homeless and hopeless.
    Residents here say they were not given sufficient warning to vacate before the demolition began late last month, and watched helplessly as local officials and police brought down their homes with bulldozers, hammers and axes.
    Authorities say they aim to demolish 365 homes in the swampy Doula V area, which they say is prone to flooding.
    Heavy rains that began two weeks ago also triggered major flooding in the area, submerging over 60,000 hectares (150,000 acres) of land and forcing thousands to flee for safety.
    As the rains persist, the governor and other local authorities have advised people to evacuate the area.
    Although many of the residents are aware of the risks of living in the swampy area, many of the city's urban poor are attracted to the area as land is cheap and blame poor city planning and infrastructure for the flooding instead.
    "If they had taken time to repair the drains, then we wouldn't have had water flooding the streets. This happened because of poor drainage. When the authorities realised what they needed to do, it was too late. Now look at this, there is water everywhere, and it needs to be drained," said one resident, Mbayim Joseph.
    Experts say several factors, including climate change, deforestation, rapid population growth and poor town planning, are exacerbating the effects of the rainy season, making the current floods among the most destructive in the town's history.
    When the demolition exercise was announced last month, officials announced that anyone refusing to leave the Douala V area will be forcefully evicted and that most of the housing - much of it built with wooden plants and other makeshift materials - will be torn down over the coming days.
    "The floods were caused because people built homes in areas where they shouldn't have. I went around with building experts to look at the boundaries that the authorities had suggested, which were appropriate but I don't understand why people came and ignored them and decided to build there," said Zabeze Patrick, a district councillor.
    With over 3 million residents, Douala is one of Cameroon's most densely populated cities.
    Flooding is not uncommon in the area, but the scale of the devastation brought by this latest flooding is unprecedented.
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