Yoff the day after heavy rain: the scars of a difficult night
Gutted roads, flooded homes, devastated businesses: the Yoff Mbenguène neighborhood still bears the scars of the rainy night of October 4.
The night was long. Very long. Under downpours, Dakar saw its streets transform into torrents, its houses take on water and its roads give way under the violence of the precipitation.
This Sunday, October 4, torrential rain fell on the Senegalese capital, causing significant material damage and human losses. According to data from the National Agency for Civil Aviation and Meteorology (ANACIM), 142 mm of rain was recorded across the entire territory, a record level.
The day after this night spent under water, several districts of Dakar woke up in disarray. In Yoff, and more particularly in the Yoff Mbenguène sector, the scars of the storm are still visible.
On Avenue Bayda Mbengue, the asphalt literally shattered. Deep craters tear open the roadway. These giant potholes paralyze traffic and force motorists to take endless detours.
Faced with the emergency, residents did not wait to act. They mobilized to clear blocked passages and make, as much as possible, the routes passable.
Mame Ousmane Samb, a community authority figure in the neighborhood, went to the site to see the extent of the damage. Notebook and pen in hand, he is not looking for someone to blame. He prefers to challenge residents about their own responsibility.
“This directly concerns us about our citizenship and our collective responsibility. We cannot accuse anyone, but this must question us about our posture. First and foremost, at the local level, it is up to the community to act. Let’s stop pointing the finger at this or that, we must wake up and show republican spirit. »
In Yoff Mbenguène, solidarity is not limited to the streets. She even invites herself into homes.
In a compound completely invaded by water, the neighbors are busy under the helpless gaze of the owner. Feet in the water, pants rolled up, young people form a real human chain. Buckets in hand, they scoop out the pieces, trying, as best they can, to rescue the home from the clutches of the flood.
Wave of solidarity
For Baye Mor Mbengue, the observation is clear. According to him, these floods are linked to the defective state of the evacuation channel installed in the area.
“These floods are the result of a faulty canal. The drainage structure installed here is cracked and damaged on top. As we approach, we can feel that it is weakening the entire ground. If another heavy rain falls, the damage will be even more serious,” he protests.
Dressed in a blue Baye Lahad outfit and sandals, the man does not hide his anger against the local authorities. He said in particular that he had been trying, since the day before, to contact the deputy mayor, without success.
“This kind of situation should keep them awake. If he realized the burden of responsibility that was entrusted to him, this responsibility for which God will ask him to account on the Day of Judgment, he is a child of Yoff, he knows perfectly well that when it rains here, people suffer enormously. He should have come early this morning and spent the day with us to see the facts. But there is no one from the town hall, no one! »
A little further away, the atmosphere is just as heavy on the beach known as “Frigo”, where many canoes are stationed.
In a neighboring hut, the Lebou notables meet and discuss the situation out loud. A few meters away, the spectacle is striking: a restaurant has literally collapsed under the pressure of the waters.
The material was swallowed up by the earth and the waves. There is almost nothing left of the restaurant. Only a table and two benches survived.
Coumba Kitane, one of the managers of the establishment, contemplates the ruins with suppressed sadness.
“We were going to an event. It was on our return that we discovered the penalty. The restaurant collapsed in front of some residents who, frightened, could do nothing. It’s very difficult to watch your possessions disappear like this before your eyes. »
In her thirties, she lists the losses, as if to measure the extent of the disaster.
“We had three gas bottles here, we only found two. And there, the barrels that contained our rice reserves were all washed away by the water. »
In Yoff Mbenguène, the waters may have started to recede, but they have left behind a heavy toll. Broken roads, flooded houses, destroyed businesses and worried residents: the traces of the night of October 4 are everywhere.
And while the sky remains threatening, the emergency can no longer be counted in hours.
Report Fatou NGOM
