Port Sudan Plunged into Crisis as Drone Attacks Cut Off Water, Power, and Aid Lifelines

Port Sudan, once a rare sanctuary from Sudan’s brutal civil war, is now buckling under the weight of relentless aerial attacks and a deepening humanitarian crisis. After six days of drone strikes allegedly carried out by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the Red Sea city is engulfed in black smoke, with fires still burning at three major fuel depots. These attacks have crippled access to diesel, disrupted water supply systems, and triggered massive power outages, severely affecting daily life.

The explosions have rendered the pumps that draw groundwater useless, creating a dire water crisis. Residents like 26-year-old Mutasim, who fled from Omdurman two years ago, now spend hours waiting for water vendors. Prices have skyrocketed from 2,000 Sudanese pounds (about $3.30) a week ago to five times that amount. With his earnings from trading goods in the local market dwindling, Mutasim and his family of eight are struggling to afford enough water for cooking, cleaning, and bathing. “Soon, we won’t be able to afford it,” he said.

Fuel shortages are compounding the crisis. Cars queue for hours at petrol stations as residents scramble to secure dwindling supplies. Mutasim says it sometimes takes him five hours to get petrol. “It’s a situation we’ve faced in other cities, but not here,” he added, recalling how Port Sudan had once offered a semblance of normalcy.

The city’s power supply has been disrupted for over two weeks, worsened by the recent attacks. Vulnerable residents, like Mutasim’s 70-year-old aunt, are suffering in the oppressive heat without electricity to power fans. “We can’t sleep,” he said.

Hawa Mustafa, a teacher who fled violence in el-Geneina, Darfur, has lived in a displaced persons shelter in Port Sudan for over two years. This week’s strikes triggered flashbacks to the early days of the war. “The drones came to us and we returned to a state of war and the lack of safety,” she told the BBC. Living without her husband, who remains trapped in Darfur due to insecurity, Hawa now shoulders the burden of raising her four children alone. “I don’t know where to go if things get worse. I was planning to leave the country, but it seems that this dream will no longer come true,” she said.

The trauma is widespread. Resident Mariam Atta says the city has changed dramatically. “We are struggling to cope. The fear is constant,” she said.

The implications of the attack stretch far beyond Port Sudan’s city limits. As the location of Sudan’s only operational international airport and its primary seaport, Port Sudan has served as the central humanitarian hub for organizations like the UN’s World Food Programme (WFP). “Port Sudan is our main humanitarian hub,” said Leni Kinzli, WFP spokesperson for Sudan. “In March, we distributed nearly 20,000 metric tonnes of food, and more than half came through this city.”

Now, aid agencies are warning that the attacks could obstruct the flow of essential supplies, worsening what is already one of the world’s most severe humanitarian crises. According to the WFP, famine has already been declared in 10 regions across the country, with 17 more at risk. “This will severely constrain the delivery of life-saving food and medical supplies,” said Shashwat Saraf of the Norwegian Refugee Council. “It’s going to be incredibly challenging to find alternative routes.”

Nightfall, once a time for community gatherings by the sea and lively football matches in local cafés, now brings an eerie silence. With power cut off and security uncertain, residents remain indoors, plunged into darkness and fear.

Since the outbreak of Sudan’s civil war in 2023, over 12 million people have been displaced, making it one of the worst humanitarian disasters globally. The battle, originally a power struggle between the RSF and the Sudanese army, has left cities like Khartoum and Omdurman devastated. Port Sudan was a rare refuge until now.

As drone attacks continue and essential services collapse, the people of Port Sudan face a grim future. With no clear path to safety and an aid lifeline at risk, the city has become yet another casualty in Sudan’s unfolding catastrophe.