West Africa floods

This item appears on page 18 of the November 2009 issue.

At press time, 16 West African nations had experienced torrential rains and flooding since June. The heaviest rains were in Burkina Faso (the worst in 90 years), Senegal, Ghana and Niger. More than 180 people died, with another 600,000 people affected. Roads, buildings and bridges were damaged, and crops and livestock were washed away.