OCHA reports 500 households affected by floods in Douala.

 It said the floods occurred on the night of September 12 breaking13, 2026. 

According to OCHA, the assessment is based on information collected by the Wouri Divisional committee of the Cameroon Red Cross. 

“Several homes were completely flooded, with nearly 200 people displaced and forced to leave their homes. Nearly 500 households were affected by the floods,” OCHA reported. 

OCHA disclosed that Red Cross teams deployed to the affected areas have assisted residents with recovering their belongings, stating that slow drainage has prolonged difficulties for affected households, some of which have no immediate alternative accommodation. 

The United Nations agency also reported sanitation problems in neighbourhoods affected by the flooding, stating that poverty and overcrowding in many of the affected areas have led to significant contamination of drinking water sources after latrines, many of which were already full, overflowed during the floods. 

Stressing on the areas most affected, the humanitarian report said that Douala I and Douala V Subdivisions are among the areas most affected, with a lot of contaminated water sources that has increased health risks for residents in these areas. 

OCHA said the damage affected both middle-income residential neighborhoods and densely populated areas where low-income households live, increasing the risk of cholera and other diseases which could affect the population. 

The agency noted that about 30 volunteers from the Wouri Red Cross remain deployed in the affected areas, with some of the volunteers themselves affected by the floods but have continued to assist residents. 

This article was first published in The Guardian Post Edition No:3917 of Tuesday September 20, 2026