Yumbi

Yumbi
Territory
Destroyed buildings in Yumbi
Yumbi
Coordinates: 1.900458°S 16.558628°E / -1.900458; 16.558628
Country	DR Congo
Province	Mai-Ndombe
Seat	Yumbi
Time zone	UTC+1 (WAT)
National language	Lingala

Yumbi is a town and territory of Mai-Ndombe in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It lies on the eastern bank of the Congo River between Bolobo and Lukolela.[1] The town of Yumbi is the headquarters of Yumbi Territory and has a population of approximately 30,000.[2][3]

On February 2, 2003 a tornado killed 17 people in and near the town. Over 4,000 people were injured, 217 seriously.[4][5]

2018 massacre

Main article: 2018 Yumbi violence

Between December 16 and 18, 2018, at least 890 people were killed in four villages of the territory, as reported by the UNHCR.[6] Around 465 houses and buildings were burned or looted, including two primary schools, two health centres, one market and the local Independent National Electoral Commission office. The motives of this massacre remain unclear but the UN hints to "clashes between Banunu and Batende communities". The real figure of people that were killed remains unknown because "there are most probably corpses that were thrown away in the river, and people that died in their burning homes."[7]

References

1. National Geographic Atlas of the World: Revised Sixth Edition, National Geographic Society, 1992
2. Blaes, X. (October 2008). "Découpage administratif de la République Démocratique du Congo" (PDF). UNOCHA and PNUD. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2010-04-01. Retrieved 2011-11-22.
3. "DRC: Experts revise figures on Yumbi tornado - only 17 dead". www.irinnews.org. IRIN. 10 February 2003. Retrieved 2012-02-04.
4. United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (2003-02-10). "DRC: Experts revise figures on Yumbi tornado - only 17 dead". IRIN news. Retrieved 2009-01-14.
5. United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (2003-02-06). "DRC: Tornado toll rises to 164 dead, 1,702 injured". IRIN news. Retrieved 2009-01-14.
6. Radio Okapi (2019-01-21). "DRC: Desperate displaced persons on Yumbi islands". Radio Okapi. Retrieved 2019-01-25.
7. Radio France Internationale (2019-01-16). "DRC: UN reports at least 890 dead in Yumbi in December". Radio France Internationale. Retrieved 2019-01-25.