‘Swallowed by the sand’: Somalia’s coastal towns succumb to the desert

Sticks poking out of the sand are all that remain of Hussein Karshe’s first home in Hobyo, which he built in 1993 and where his six children were born. His second home nearby has also been abandoned because of the sand. Photograph: Nuur Mohamed

Hussein Karshe paces back and forth across the sand on the outskirts of the coastal town of Hobyo. Beneath the soft white dune lie the remains of the two-bedroom house he built for his family in 1993. A few sticks buried below the sand are the only visible sign of the building where his six children were born. Karshe lived there for nearly 20 years, supporting his family by selling goats.

But in 2011 heavy sandstorms covered the ground around his home. Over the next year the sand accumulated, creeping up the external walls of the house and blowing into the rooms. At first Karshe tried to keep the sand at bay by scooping it out with his hands or a small shovel, but his efforts proved futile.