10 People Reported Dead In Floods In Tanzania

At least five children have died and many homes have been destroyed.

Flooding in Tanzania has claimed the lives of ten people, including at least five children, local publication Daily News reports.

Murtaza Bhaloo

This picture was taken by a passenger flying over part of the region.

Rain has besieged areas of Dar es Salaam, the country's richest area, for two days.

shailesh sheth @shethnakuru

Horrific scenes in Dar-es-Salaam #Tanzania as floods sweep highways & anything in the path via @JamiiForums

08:48 PM - 12 Apr 2014

The flooding has caused devastation to infrastructure across the city and many homes have been entirely destroyed.

Daniel Hayduk @danielhayduk

Dar is flooding.. Roads submerged, homes flooded & more rain on the way. Pics: http://t.co/bLRVRsFoQI #DarFloods

02:21 PM - 12 Apr 2014

The Tanzania Meteorological Agency warned residents in coastal areas to vacate the area before the weekend in anticipation of the floods. This comes after Dar es Salaam also suffered from heavy rain towards the end of last month.

DaresSalaam Floods @DarFloods

Umeme #DarFloods #MafurikoDar

06:21 PM - 12 Apr 2014

Daniel Hayduk, a photographer based in Dar es Salaam, told BuzzFeed the situation could have been much worse if rain had continued today.

DANIEL HAYDUK/AFP / Getty Images/Newscom

"The rain held off today. A major concern was that if it had kept raining today, water levels would have risen," Hayduk said.

"I was looking at an area yesterday, Jangwani, where the water was up to the rooftops. There's a lot of history in that area with regards to flooding but today the water had dropped a good 4ft [1.2m] since last night."

Hayduk talked about the support for victims, both in person and on Twitter.

DANIEL HAYDUK/AFP / Getty Images/Newscom

"People knew the rain was coming, there was no surprise, it might have caught people off guard. Most people were able to get out alright," he said.

While a task force yesterday focussed on rescue missions, today's efforts have been focused on recovery.

"It seems to me that a lot of people have been able to find shelter with friends in higher ground. People have been stoic in moving out of the area," Hayduk added.

"I will say that it's in times like this, judging by the online reaction, the #darfloods hashtag on Twitter, for example, there is a lot of support going out to flood victims and there's a lot of concern."

The Tanzanian government could not be reached for comment.

Stephen Mhando @StephenMhando

My heart goes out to all those affected by #DarFloods

12:36 PM - 13 Apr 2014

Aikande Kwayu @aikande

Praying for the victims of #DarFloods and for all rescue & relief efforts

05:51 AM - 13 Apr 2014