The republic of Benin in West Africa was submerged in flood the first of its kind in 47 years following an unprecedented heavy rainfall. According to official sources, a total of 700,000 persons have been affected by the flood out of which more than 200,000 have become internally displaced without homes. About 65 persons mostly children lost their lives due to cholera outbreak as water from the drainage system and the overflowing lagoons had contaminated domestic water supply. Residents were forced to use canoes converted to taxis to get to their homes to see if they could still salvage some valuables from their flooded homes.
Schools which had just resumed classes after the long vacation remained deserted as school children could not find their way into the school compounds. Fishermen who had converted their boats into street taxis still found time to catch fishes on the flooded streets.
