Fatou Ngueye, 34, sits within the last two remaining walls of her living room–which is now open to the sand and ocean– with her children. The family has been sleeping on the floor of a neighbor’s home for over a year so that her husband, a fisherman, can remain close to the sea.
As the ocean erodes the sand, the foundations of homes are swept away. Here an entire room in pristine condition has toppled onto the sand. ,
The Senegalese government keeps track of the crumbling houses on the Saint Louis coast with a series of personalized numbers. As the properties become uninhabitable, the families are identified by these tracking codes associated with their former homes. They are then being moved to a tented camp site where they will often live with 3 or 4 other families in a single structure
As the Water Comes
On the northern coast of Senegal, the village of Saint-Louis has been in a losing battle with the ocean. Homes lining the shore have been decimated, mosques and schools lay in ruins as the crashing waves pull sand away, leading to foundations eroding, caved-in floors, crumbling walls, and even the oldest cemetery has now begun to flood.
Currently, more than 760 people have been forced to evacuate due to erosion. Most have been resettled by the authorities to a tented site, known as Khar Yalla camp, further inland. This camp has a few outdoor showers and toilets, but lacks access to proper running water, and since it is without irrigation, often floods.
Further south in an area with 80,0000 residents, Doun Baba Dièye, was completely submerged in 2009, just a few years after the authorities in Senegal abruptly dug a channel through the small Langue de Barbarie peninsula, that initially protected the residents. This breach quickly grew; bringing erosion to areas that had previously been shielded, so that the residents were finally forced to completely abandon their town and relocate inland.
None know what they will do as the water continues to inflict damage.
A portrait of Mari Taw, 58 years old, in front of her home, which has been in her family for more than 4 generations. The house, which she shares with her two adult sons and their families, is barely habitable, as the walls and stairway have begun to break apart.
Still, she feels lucky that it’s set back one row from the ocean, so there's hope that they might be able to stay for another year before having move to the government's tented camp
Tents in Khar Yalla Camp where families who've lost their homes are moved by the government. Roughly 14 people from 3 separate families can live in each tent, which can be hot & stifling during the day.
The interior of a tent in Khar Yalla Camp where families who've lost their homes are rehoused by the government. Roughly 14 people from 3 separate families can live in each tent, which can be hot & stifling during the day.
Residents of Khar Yalla camp– the “temporary” site where people whose homes have been destroyed are relocated– queue for water. The arid land at the camp is not connected to sufficient water lines, so people must collect it from a single tapped source for all their washing and cooking needs.
The remaining facades of sea-facing homes in Saint-Louis, Senegal
Fisherman, Daoud Diallo, sits under the bow of a boat for shade. He lives in a single room that he shares with 9 other people after his family home became inhabitable due to erosion.
The local cemetery in Saint Louis has also begun to flood. The majority of people from the region have at least one relative buried here
A child plays on the ruins of a sea wall after the ocean surge.
Saint Louis, Senegal
The tree that previously marked the center of the village of Doun Baba Dieye is now covered by water, taken over by cormorant birds.
Doun Baba Dieye was a village of fishermen, farmers and cattle people, south of Saint-Louis. Here- due to the channel that Senegalese authorities dug- the floodwaters swelled to the point that villagers were forced to completely abandon their homes and move inland.