After two consecutive days of heavy rainfall, residents in several parts of Juba City experienced severe flooding, which caused property damage and the loss of lives due to collapsing structures.
According to reports, the rains on Saturday and Sunday resulted in multiple tragedies, including the death of five family members after a concrete wall collapsed on their small tukul due to the force of the rushing rainwater.
Amid these challenges, many residents blamed the poor drainage system and urged national and state authorities to swiftly mitigate the flooding and its devastating effects.
Residents noted that the flooding crisis has worsened due to inadequate drainage infrastructure, which prevents rainwater from following a natural path.
In an interview with this outlet, Araba Martha, a resident of the Jebel area, explained that the lack of proper drainage forces water to pass through residential areas, causing extensive damage.
“You see, water comes from higher ground toward lower areas, and when there is no proper channel, it floods houses and causes destruction,” she said.
Martha lamented the impact of Saturday’s heavy rain, which led to the destruction of small tukuls in the area due to the rapid flow of rainwater, urging the national and state governments, along with other institutions, to collaborate on a solution.
“We need our government, both at the national and state levels, to work with other organizations to construct a proper drainage system so the water can have designated channels to flow through,” she emphasized.
She also assured that residents are ready to support any initiative aimed at ending the ongoing flooding crisis.
“We are committed to ensuring that our areas are surveyed in a way that allows water to flow without causing destruction,” she added.
Similarly, Michael Amule, a resident of Referendum, stated that flooding remains a constant challenge in his neighborhood due to the absence of a proper drainage system.
“Since this area was established, flooding has continued to destroy properties and block roads whenever it rains, yet no long-term solution has been introduced,” he said.
Amule called on the government to assist with urban planning measures to end the flooding problem. “We need urban planners to design and implement effective drainage solutions so that water can flow properly without destroying people’s property.”
Meanwhile, Peter Makacha, a resident of Juba Na-Bari, commonly known as Thongping, noted that entire families are forced to abandon their homes during the rainy season due to persistent flooding.
“The rainwater flows into lowland areas where there is no drainage system, leading to widespread destruction,” he explained.
Makacha emphasized that the only viable solution to the crisis is the development of an adequate drainage system to facilitate proper water flow.
Engineer Lumuke Daniel, a surveyor in the Ministry of Land, Housing, and Urban Development, acknowledged that many areas are prone to flooding due to a lack of designated water pathways.
He assured that the government is committed to addressing the problem by implementing drainage solutions.
“We have identified areas affected by flooding, especially those with poor drainage. Plans are in place to address the issue,” he stated. “Swamps are left undeveloped for a reason. When people build structures in such areas, they inadvertently block water zones. During the rainy season, the water has no alternative routes, leading to severe flooding.”
The heavy rain on Saturday led to a tragic incident where a collapsed wall fence fell onto a small tukul, killing a father, mother, and their three children.
According to a statement seen by this outlet, Zinariya Chuol, a relative of the deceased, expressed his sorrow on Facebook.
“This is what happened to my uncle’s family yesterday at 8 PM during the rain. The building collapsed on themmy, uncle, his wife, and their three children. That was the cause of their death,” Chuol wrote.
Efforts to reach the police for official confirmation regarding the destruction were unsuccessful.
