Floods kill at least 120 in DRC capital Kinshasa

At least 120 people have been killed in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) capital Kinshasa after heavy rains unleashed floods and caused landslides, a government document seen by the Reuters news agency showed.

Entire neighbourhoods were flooded with muddy water, and houses and roads were ripped apart by sinkholes on Tuesday, including the N1 highway that connects Kinshasa to the chief seaport of Matadi.

The prime minister's office said in a statement that the N1 could be closed for 3-4 days.

The General Management of Migration, a part of the Interior Ministry compiled the death toll.

Health Minister Jean-Jacques Mbungani Mbanda told Reuters the ministry had counted 141 dead but that the number needed to be cross-checked with other departments.

Images posted on Twitter by DRC's government spokesperson Patrick Muyaya showed a major road that appeared to have subsided into a deep chasm, with crowds staring at the damage.

"On the National Road 1, there is a big hole. Only pedestrians can pass. We do not understand how the water cut the road," said local resident Gabriel Mbikolo.

READ MORE: DRC's Tshisekedi blames climate crisis for Kinshasa floods, seeks damages

Flooding in megacity 

Once a fishing village on the banks of the Congo river, Kinshasa has grown into one of Africa's largest megacities with a population of around 15 million.

Poorly regulated rapid urbanisation has made the city increasingly vulnerable to flash floods after intense rains, which have become more frequent due to climate change.

In November 2019, around 40 people in Kinshasa died in floods and landslides.

Mont-Ngafula was one of the worst-hit areas, but a local resident said the flooding this time was even worse.

"We've never seen a flood here on this scale," said Blanchard Mvubu, who lives in the Mont-Ngafula neighbourhood of CPA Mushie.

Another man, who gave his name as Freddy, said everything in his home was under water — "shoes, food stocks, clothes."

In addition to damaged infrastructure, each day of flooding costs households a combined $1.2 million due to the large-scale transport disruption, according to a 2020 World Bank paper.