At least eight people, including several children, have lost their lives in Yemen over the past two days as relentless flash floods, triggered by heavy rainfall, wreaked havoc across multiple provinces, local authorities and media reported on Saturday.

The ongoing deluge has exposed the country’s fragile infrastructure, crippled by over a decade of conflict, leaving communities vulnerable to recurring natural disasters.

In Hajjah province in northwest Yemen, a tragic incident unfolded in the village of al-Khadraa, Ku’aydinah district, where a house collapsed under the force of surging floodwaters. According to the Houthi-run 26 September news outlet, three children perished in the collapse, while their parents were rescued from the rubble with severe injuries. The floods also devastated displaced families in Hajjah’s Abs district, where the Houthi-run Interior Ministry’s Security Media Center reported that torrential waters destroyed dozens of makeshift tents and fragile shelters housing internally displaced persons (IDPs). These families, already uprooted by Yemen’s ongoing war, now face further displacement with nowhere to turn.

In the southern province of Shabwah, a father and his son drowned late Friday in Usaylan district, adding to the mounting death toll. Just hours earlier, two children and a young man lost their lives in separate drowning incidents across Shabwah and neighboring Hadhramaut province, bringing the total fatalities in these two regions to five within 48 hours. Earlier this week, the southern port city of Aden was also battered by heavy rains, which caused widespread flooding, injured several residents, and inflicted significant property damage.

Local authorities reported that the death toll may rise as rescue operations continue in affected areas. The Yemen Meteorological Service issued fresh warnings of persistent heavy rainfall through at least Tuesday, raising concerns about overflowing dams and worsening flood conditions. Residents have been urged to avoid riverbeds, low-lying areas, and unstable structures. In a statement posted on X, the Yemen Red Crescent Society reported deploying emergency teams to provide aid, including food, blankets, and temporary shelters, to hundreds of affected families in Hajjah and Shabwah. However, limited resources and damaged infrastructure are hampering relief efforts.

Yemen’s vulnerability to such disasters is exacerbated by its ongoing conflict between the internationally recognized government and the Houthi movement, which has left the country’s infrastructure in tatters. Roads, drainage systems, and emergency services remain woefully inadequate, amplifying the impact of seasonal rains. On X, residents have expressed growing frustration over the lack of government action to address these systemic issues, with one user posting, “Every year, the rains come, and every year, we lose lives because no one fixes the basics.”

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported on Saturday that the floods have displaced an additional 2,000 families across Yemen since the start of August, adding to the 4.5 million IDPs already struggling in the war-torn nation. Humanitarian agencies are appealing for international support to provide urgent aid, warning that the combination of conflict, poverty, and natural disasters is pushing Yemen to the brink.

As the rains continue, authorities and aid organizations are bracing for further challenges, with fears that the death toll and displacement figures could climb in the coming days. For now, Yemen’s resilient but weary population faces yet another test of survival amid compounding crises. (ILKHA)