Ethiopia braced Sunday for more damage from deadly nation-wide flash floods as the government warned unusually heavy seasonal rains could force the release of water from dangerously swollen dams.
A task force set up to deal with flooding crises that have affected nearly 75,000 people said three dams in the west, south and north of the country were close to the breaking point and advised residents in their vicinities to leave.
Although controlled, it said the release of water from the threatened dams on the Omo, Awash and Blue Nile rivers could compound devastation from floods that have already killed at least 626 people in the south, east and north.
"Currently, the main dams are planning to release some waters and the national task force is advising people living near the dams and downstream to take precautionary measures and, if possible, move to higher ground," it said.
The facilities are the Gilgel Gibe dam on the Omo River, which has already flooded huge areas in the south-west, the Koka dam on the Awash River that has flooded in the east and the Tise Aby dam on the Blue Nile in the north.
The release of water from these dams "may flood some areas," the task force said in a statement released by the information ministry.
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