Sudan's major floods present first challenge for its new leader

FILE PHOTO: Sudanese people use boats to carry their belongings as they paddle through the flood waters near the River Nile in Khartoum localities, Sudan September 2, 2019. REUTERS/Mohamed Nureldin Abdallah/File Photo

WAD RAMLI, Sudan (Reuters) - In Wad Ramli, a village outside the Sudanese capital of Khartoum, Alsamani Fathalrahman and his neighbours travelled in blue speedboats through flooded streets trying to salvage their belongings.

"In just five hours, the area was completely flooded, with no prior notice, so people could only save themselves," Fathalrahman said, as the 27-year-old engineer recovered bed frames and school books from abandoned homes.