| Logone River | |
| Map: | Charirivermap.png |
| Subdivision Type1: | Countries |
| Subdivision Type5: | City |
| Subdivision Name5: | Kousséri |
| Length: | 1000km (1,000miles) |
| Discharge1 Avg: | 492m3/s |
| Source1 Location: | Central African Republic |
| Mouth Location: | Chari River at N'Djaména, Chad |
| Mouth Coordinates: | 12.1061°N 15.0353°W |
| Mouth Elevation: | 364m (1,194feet) |
| Basin Size: | 78000km2 |
| Custom Label: | Protection status |
The Logon or Logone River is a major tributary of the Chari River. The Logone's sources are located in the western Central African Republic, northern Cameroon, and southern Chad. It has two major tributaries: the Pendé River (Eastern Logone) in the prefecture Ouham-Pendé in the Central African Republic and the Mbéré River (Western Logone) in the east of Cameroon.[1] Many swamps and wetlands surround the river.
Settlements on the river include Kousseri, Cameroon's northernmost city, and Chad's capital city, N'Djaména, which is located at the site where the Logone empties into the Chari River.
The Logone forms part of the international border between Chad and Cameroon.
The flow of the river has been observed over 38 years (1951–84) in Bongor a town in Chad downstream of the union with the Pendé about 450km (280miles) above the mouth into the Chari.[2] The Bongor observed average annual flow during this period was 492m3/s fed by an area of about 73.7km2 approximately 94.5% of the total catchment area of the River. Due to the strong evaporation, the amount of water flowing into the estuary decreases. In N'Djamena, the flow reduces to 400m3/s.
In the eastern lower Logone valley formed out of the Kotoko population several historic sultanates (Kousseri, Logone-Birni, Makari-Goulfey and others) which were vassals of the Bornu or Baguirmi inside the borders of modern-day Cameroon.
In Chad, the administrative regions Logone Oriental and Logone Occidental named after the river. Ober-Logone was an administrative district of the German colony of Cameroon.
On the night of September 17 to September 18, 2013, heavy rains caused a rupture of the dam along the Logone River at the town of Dougui, Kai Kai District in the Far North Region of Cameroon. This caused initial evacuations of people to the banks of the dam. On September 27, a second rupture in the dam 4km (02miles) from the first rupture started flooding the area and nearly 9,000 people were displaced.[3]