Video-captured photo of homesteads submerged by floods in Mayom County. (Photo credit: SSBC).

Eight out of the eleven payams of Mayom County of Unity State have been submerged in floodwater forcing households in dire humanitarian situation to flee to higher grounds, the commissioner said.

A video footage aired on state-owned television SSBC, show Commissioner Luka Chierech Riek visiting several inundated and abandoned villages where crops have withered in excess water.

“This is one of the 11 payams of Mayom. As you can see, we are really in dire floods situation that is indescribable,” said Mr. Riek, who spoke to a reporter, while standing in floodwater in Ruathnyibol Payam.

The commissioner said the affected payams include Ruathnyibol, Kueryiek, Bieh, Pup, Mankien, and Kuerbuowni.

“The flooding is severe. So many villages have been devastated, and many people have been evacuated to higher grounds to the north,” he added.

Mayom County is prone to flooding because of its low-lying topography and proximity to a network of Nile tributaries including the Nam river which bursts its banks during the rainy season.

More than 890,000 people have been affected by flooding in 40 counties across South Sudan leading to massive displacement, loss of livelihoods and destruction of critical infrastructures, the UN humanitarian agency said.

OCHA said about 226,000 people have abandoned their homes – out of whom 114,480 were displaced from Unity State alone, where over 20,000 students are out of learning after floods submerged 65 schools there since May 2024.

“Due to damaged and impassable roads, physical access to affected communities remains a challenge,” the agency said.