Severe flooding causes the death of 4 people in Tunisia

Arab Weather - Four people died in Tunisia due to record rainfall that caused flooding and forced schools to suspend work, especially in the capital, while an official on Tuesday described the situation as "very difficult" in some states.

"We recorded exceptional amounts of rain during January, in areas such as Monastir (central-east), Nabeul (northeast) and Greater Tunis," Abdelrazak Rahal, director of forecasts at the National Institute of Meteorology, told AFP.

He explained that those areas had not recorded similar quantities since 1950.

Civil Protection spokesman Khalil Al-Mashri said that four people died in the city of Moknine in the Monastir Governorate. Regional Director of Civil Protection Abdel Raouf Marwani indicated, via local radio station Mosaique FM, that among the victims was a woman in her fifties, after she was swept away by the water.

Social media platforms circulated images of torrential floods in the streets, which also showed a large number of cars stuck as the water level rose to the level of the doors.

A source in the Ministry of Defense, who asked not to be identified, told AFP that the army, which is a member of the natural disaster response committee, is involved in the rescue operations.

Heavy rains have continued almost continuously since Monday evening in the capital Tunis and other areas in the central-eastern region.

The local bar association announced the suspension of sessions in the courts of Greater Tunis due to the situation. Classes were also suspended in schools in the capital and other areas, according to local media reports quoting authorities. Public and private transport was severely affected, to the point of coming to a standstill in some areas.

Source: Sky News