Beledweyne: City where long-awaited rains cause residents' sleepless nights

An El Nino is a natural, temporary, and occasional warming of part of the Pacific that shifts weather patterns across the globe, often by moving the airborne paths for storms. It is hardest in December through February. Scientists believe climate change is making El Nino stronger.

Many parts of Somalia, as well as in neighboring Horn of Africa nations Kenya and Ethiopia, are still receiving torrential rainfall. At least 130 people have died in the three countries in what aid agencies have described as a rare flooding phenomenon.

The U.N.-backed Somali Water and Land Information Management project has warned of "a flood event of a magnitude statistically likely only once in 100 years," the U.N. food agency said in a recent statement.

Some 1.6 million people in Somalia could be affected by flooding events in the rainy season lasting until December, it said.

Beledweyne, in the central region of Hiran, maybe the most devastated community. As floodwaters swept through, homes were washed away.