Pak military engineers battle rising South Sudan floods waters: report

Pakistan’s Military Engineering Task Force, serving with the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), is monitoring the water levels and maintaining the dykes that provide the only barrier between the water and some 300,000 residents of Bentiu, the capital of South Sudan’s Unity State, according to a report received in New York. Even though the rainy season is long gone, the stagnant waters that hold the town of Bentiu hostage after years of extraordinary flooding are continuing to rise, the report said, adding that Pakistani engineers are concerned that the current water levels are only seven centimetres less than at the highest peak, after heavy floods in 2022.

More than 5,400 square kilometres of this low-lying region is now covered by a dirty, brownish lake that has made the town, including a large displacement camp, a veritable island – protected only by massive earthen dykes and berms built and maintained by UNMISS and humanitarian partners. “Our teams start the day by conducting foot patrols to identify weak spots and we shore them up as soon as they are flagged. It is like a race against time,” Major Khizar Dilshad, the lead engineer for the Pakistani Blue Helmets, said. He highlighted the diverse challenges facing communities and peacekeeping missions, increasingly impacted by climate shocks which are equally as perilous as armed conflict.

To combat the threat, the peacekeepers keep adding soil to increase the height and width of the dykes holding back a sea of water, effectively protecting 300,000 people, including displaced families, as well as the airstrip, UN base and humanitarian facilities. When the floods first hit, entire villages were washed away, health and education facilities submerged, and any chance of agricultural activities wiped out. “The peacekeepers are doing an incredible job monitoring the waters, protecting the dykes, and keeping us safe,” Rhoda James, who runs a small stall to support her family, said.

At the Rubkona airstrip, another engineering team from the same contingent, diligently levels red marram soil with a grader, while an excavator team is on standby to keep adding more. “This airstrip is critical because it is the lifeline connecting Bentiu and the displaced community to the rest of the world. Our biggest priority is to keep it operable,” Captain Ambar Asif, a female engineer with the Pakistani contingent, said.

Source: https://dailytimes.com.pk/1454901/pak-military-engineers-battle-rising-south-sudan-floods-waters-report/