Death Toll Rises - The worst Ethiopian flood kills up to 700

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The latest in a series of devastating floods in Ethiopia has left 194 dead, lifting the total dead this month to around 700.

Thousands also remain stranded in remote regions, cut off by massive floods and desperate for food and shelter.

State TV said in a statement the situation in southern Ethiopia, where the Omo river burst its banks on Sunday, was critical, with 194 bodies now recovered and 6,000 people needing emergency assistance.

"Two army helicopters and 14 motorboats have been deployed to evacuate up to 6,000 people marooned by the floods," it said. "Bad weather has been hampering rescuers."

After suffering a drought since late last year, heavy rains have been battering Ethiopia in recent weeks.

In the east, the Dechatu river burst its banks last week, killing 254 and leaving 250 missing and feared dead.

Officials and aid workers say the numbers of dead and homeless could turn out to be much higher due to the inaccessibility of the regions worst affected.

The local populations are mainly nomadic herders.

As well as the Omo and Dechatu disasters, officials fear the overflowing Awash River, some 190 miles east of the capital, could soon burst its banks too.

Some 7,000 people near the riverbank are being evacuated.

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