A devastating climate crisis is unfolding in Uvira, a lakeside town in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s South Kivu province, where hundreds of homes are submerged due to rising water levels in Lake Tanganyika.
Recent footage reveals vast areas of the town completely underwater — homes, roads, and farmlands drowned beneath the lake’s expanding shoreline. Residents are seen navigating through waist-high floodwaters, with some placing sandbags outside their homes in a desperate attempt to hold back the relentless deluge.
“The water has overflowed into my plot, and life is difficult,” said Safi Kabazi Vumi, a local resident. “We are forced to stay here — the snakes, the diseases, the lack of clean water — we are suffering enormously.”
Another displaced resident, Laetitia Mwajuma Changa Changa, described the fear of moving again as waters continue to rise:
“Our home was flooded. We took refuge in a nearby house, but now the water has reached here too.”
Environmental experts say climate change is a major driver behind the rising lake levels, citing irregular seasonal patterns.
According to Serge Muledak Kitambala, head of Uvira’s environmental civil society group, lake levels usually fluctuate, but over the past two years, the flooding has intensified beyond anything previously seen.
“The period from March to May is always risky, but people build homes when waters recede between September and November. Without proper regulation and outreach, these constructions are wiped out again,” Kitambala explained.
Critics also point fingers at the Congolese government’s inaction.
“There’s no plan, no supervision, no real help. Donors are not stepping in either. The government is not capable,” Kitambala added.
According to local media reports, over 3,000 homes have been submerged, and more than 36,000 people displaced since early 2023. Health crises are also spreading due to contaminated water and lack of sanitation, while invasive wildlife like snakes increasingly threaten residents.
As Lake Tanganyika — the second-largest freshwater lake in the world — continues to rise, Uvira becomes a stark warning of how global warming is no longer a future threat, but a present-day disaster.
