Intense combat on September 23 in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, has overloaded an Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)-supported hospital with dozens of severely wounded people, including women and children. As of September 24, 81 people had been admitted to Dayniile Hospital on the outskirts of Mogadishu, the vast majority suffering from blast wounds. Four have died.

The MSF team set up an additional tent in the hospital compound to accommodate the new influx of patients. Three other tents had previously been set up to manage the overflow from the 59-bed hospital, which received 45 war-wounded people during a single day last week. On September 23, there were about 161 people being treated.

“The people of Mogadishu are bearing the brunt of an ongoing, vicious war, and our medical staff is struggling to keep up,” said MSF Head of Mission Thierry Goffeau. “This latest round of violence, which has been growing in intensity for the last month, is straining our capacity to adequately meet the enormous emergency medical needs of the population.”

Since August 23, the MSF team has treated 542 war-wounded people, 394 of them suffering from blast injuries and 148 from gunshot wounds. Nearly 220 surgeries have been performed. Some medical supplies are out of stock in Mogadishu and MSF has moved to rapidly resupply Dayniile Hospital with items ranging from drainage tubes to sheets and mattresses.

“Men, women, and young children have been admitted to the hospital with the most horrific blast injuries,” said Goffeau. “Tragically, conflict in Mogadishu is nothing new, but the impact on the civilian population must not be forgotten.”