Heavy rains have wreaked havoc in Somalia's self-declared autonomous region of Puntland, with floods killing three people and leaving thousands homeless, according to local officials.

Alula district mayor Hareed Isse Omar said that hundreds of families in the area were evacuated to safer grounds in the mountains on 4 November.

"We have appealed to the government [of Puntland] and to aid agencies to bring food and shelter material as quickly as possible," he said.

The flash floods followed unusual heavy rains in the area and caught residents by surprise. Dozens of people were injured and 18 people were missing.

Omar said: "The floods were so sudden that the people barely had time to get away. Everything has been washed away including entire homes."

The village of Eil Quud's only school was destroyed, while in the nearby coastal village of Baredo, the floods swept away all the fishing boats, Omar added.

Mohamed Said Kashawiito, the director-general of the Puntland ministry of local government, told IRIN that his ministry was dispatching a team to the area to "assess the extent of the damage and needs of the affected population”.

The terrain in the flood-affected area, some 560km southeast of Bosasso, the commercial capital of the region, is mountainous. It is a remote area and reportedly difficult to access.