Niger floods force thousands from homes in Niamey

Niamey has seen heavy rains since June

The authorities in Niger have ordered thousands of people to leave their homes in the capital, Niamey, because of serious flooding.

Many are sheltering in schools while others have nowhere to go.

Flooding is a recurrent problem in Niger, but this year more than 40 people have died since the rainy season began in June.

Buildings have also been destroyed, and key roads cut in several parts of the country. Livestock has been lost.

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In May, the UN warned that 106,000 people in the country were at risk.

The flooding has left some people in a desperate state.

"Where can we go? We've lost our home, our money and our clothes," Ramatou Ali, a man in his 70s from a western suburb of Niamey, told the French-language news site Jeune Afrique.

Floods last year affected tens of thousands of people and killed dozens, mainly in the desert regions of Agadez and Tahoua.