Floods devastating Mozambique and Malawi

The heavy rains that have been falling for almost one week in Malawi and Mozambique have affected more than 1 million people, according to the 13 March provisional toll of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

The hardest hit country, Malawi, alone reported 56 deaths, 577 injuries and 922 900 victims. The Chikwawa district would be most affected by the natural disaster according to satellite images. Mozambique recorded 66 deaths, 111 injuries and 141 000 victims according to media quoting official sources..

The red alert was declared by the Government of Mozambique which opened 16 centers in Zambezia and Tete provinces to shelter the victims.

Tropical Cyclone IDAI, the cause of the catastrophe, was formed on 9 March 2019 over the Northern Mozambique Channel. It is currently heading towards the center of the country. Very heavy rains would be expected in the city of Beira.

Mozambique is regularly affected by climatic events. As a reminder, Cyclone Eline claimed the lives of 700 people and caused about 500 million USD of damage in 2000. The tropical storm, Fundi, caused a hundred casualties in 2015.

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