South Sudanese refugee Dawood Kour fled to Sudan to turn the page on a life of displacement, only to be forced onto the streets once more after floodwaters submerged his rickety shelter.

Kour crossed the border in November, fleeing years of conflict in his home city of Malakal -- itself prone to flooding.

South Sudan became the world's newest independent nation in 2011, seceding from Sudan. But in late 2013, it plunged into a devastating, five-year civil war that it has yet to fully recover from.

Since fleeing, Kour had lived in the Al-Qanaa camp, a growing community of around 35,000 refugees in the Al-Jabalain district of White Nile state.

But this month, Kour was displaced yet again as floodwaters inundated the camp. He moved to the nearest patch of dry land he could find -- the roadside.

The waters rose so fast that "we had no time to collect our belongings," Kour told AFP. "We only carried our children."

"We now have no food, medication or anything to fight the swarms of mosquitoes."

Over 288,000 residents and refugees have been affected in Sudan where heavy rains and flash floods have hit 13 of the 18 states, according to the United Nations.

Humanitarian needs have swelled, and been exacerbated by the disaster in neighbouring South Sudan too, where the deluge has affected and displaced about 426,000 people, the UN said.

In Sudan, thousands of refugees were relocated to different camps, while others took shelter in villages that were spared, but many are now living on the streets.

"They have become homeless," said Ibrahim Mohamed, a senior official at Sudan's refugee commission.

"We are facing a serious challenge of finding new land to relocate them to."

- No food, shelter -

Torrential rains pummel Sudan annually between June and October.

The downpours often leave the country grappling with severe flooding that wrecks properties, infrastructure and crops.

Last year, Sudan declared a three-month state of emergency as flooding that the UN has called the country's worst in a century left around 140 people dead and 900,000 affected.

So far this year, the floods have killed more than 80 people nationwide and damaged or destroyed around 35,000 homes, according to Sudanese authorities.

In the Al-Jabalain district, neither Sudanese villagers nor the refugees were prepared for the inundation.

"Villagers say they have not witnessed such floods in 40 years," said Anwar Abushura, the head of Al-Qanaa camp.

Refugees desperately built a rudimentary dirt barrier to try to protect their shelters, Kour said.

"But the water arrived at such a fast pace, and the flood barrier collapsed within two days," he said.

Many refugees had to make their way through the stagnant floodwater to salvage building materials and belongings from the collapsed shelters.

"We have no food or even rugs to sleep on," said refugee David Bedi, 45, whose shelter was engulfed.

"We just want to build roofs over our children's heads."

- 'Little chance' -

Aid workers have warned of a looming outbreak of diseases among the doubly displaced refugees.

AFP saw some people bathing in the floodwater and using it to fill drinking containers.

Al-Qanaa camp head Abushura said they were expecting a "medical disaster".

Around 150 refugees from Al-Qanaa and the nearby Al-Alagaya camp, including children, were diagnosed with malaria on Monday, according to figures compiled by Sudan's refugee commission.

Darquos Manuel, 32, said food had been spoilt, "mosquitoes are eating the children and the rains continue to pour down even as we live on the streets".

"There is little chance for survival under these conditions," he said.

At Al-Alagaya camp, where many refugees were relocated, Nagwa James pointed to shelters that had buckled under the relentless torrents of water.

"We fear... we will get flooded the same way Al-Qanaa did," the South Sudanese refugee said.

Conditions were already poor, "mosquitoes are everywhere and there are a lot of infections", she added.

Mohamed Ali Abuselib, head of the camp, said refugees had been moved from low-lying areas.

But most are in the open, he added, "and we are expecting more floods".

426,000 affected by flooding in South Sudan: UN
Juba (AFP) Sept 21, 2021 - Heavy flooding has affected and displaced about 426,000 people in South Sudan, including 185,000 children, as overflowing rivers deluged homes and farms in the impoverished country, the UN's emergency-response agency said on Tuesday.

Emergency workers have used canoes and boats to reach people cut off by the deluge, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said in a briefing note, warning that more heavy rains and flooding were expected in the coming months.

The downpours "have exacerbated the vulnerability of communities, with many people displaced by the floods seeking refuge in churches and schools", the agency said.

In Bentiu, the capital of Unity state, which is home to about a third of the flood-hit population, desperate farmers begged for help, as rising waters triggered by early seasonal rainfall submerged their houses and their land.

"Even the animals are being affected. All the places we use to graze them in are all flooded with water," farmer Gatjiath Pal told AFP.

"Everywhere is water... and we don't know when this will end because it is raining every day here," he said.

Other villagers said they were frightened of being bitten by snakes as the deluge prompts the reptiles to seek shelter inside buildings.

"Life here is so miserable," Nyadak Chuol, a mother of three, told AFP.

"The roads are getting blocked... water has come up to our houses. We are struggling every day now to find safe places to stay," the 33-year-old said.

"The worst thing is that... wild and dangerous animals like snakes are moving closer to us," she added.

The heavy downpours have destroyed flimsy thatched huts and killed livestock, a year after record floods affected about 700,000 people.

Around 100,000 of those displaced in last year's disaster have still not returned home, the UN agency said.

In addition to health facilities being damaged or destroyed by the floods, 113 schools have also been affected, putting children's education at risk, it warned.

Meanwhile rescue teams are struggling to get aid to some 25,000 people in Warrap, a northwest state plagued by deadly conflict between rival ethnic groups.

- Aid cuts -

OCHA last month warned of limited supplies and a funding shortfall, saying that it had only received 54 percent of the $1.7 billion (1.4 billion euros) required to pay for programmes in the country.

Funding shortages have also forced the UN World Food Programme to suspend food aid to over 100,000 displaced people in South Sudan, the agency said earlier this month, warning of further reductions unless it received more cash.

Four out of five of South Sudan's 11 million people live in "absolute poverty", according to the World Bank in 2018, while more than 60 percent of its population suffers from severe hunger from the combined effects of conflict, drought and floods.

Since achieving independence from Sudan in 2011, the young nation has been in the throes of a chronic economic and political crisis, and is struggling to recover from the aftermath of a five-year civil war that left nearly 400,000 people dead.

Although a 2018 ceasefire and power-sharing deal between President Salva Kiir and his deputy Riek Machar still largely holds, it is being sorely tested, with little progress made in fulfilling the terms of the peace process.

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426,000 affected by flooding in South Sudan: UN
Juba (AFP) Sept 21, 2021
Heavy flooding has affected and displaced about 426,000 people in South Sudan, including 185,000 children, as overflowing rivers deluged homes and farms in the impoverished country, the UN's humanitarian agency OCHA said Tuesday. Emergency workers have used canoes and boats to reach people cut off by the deluge, OCHA said in a briefing note, warning that more heavy rains and flooding were expected in the coming months. The downpours "have exacerbated the vulnerability of communities, with many p ... read more