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Massive flooding in Mozambique after cyclone

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MAPUTO: Heavy rains caused flooding in northern Mozambique on Sunday, three days after Cyclone Kenneth battered the coast, killing at least eight people and damaging thousands of homes.


“It’s now raining heavily in Pemba, Cabo Delgado, and some parts of the city are already flooded,” said Saviano Abreu, spokesman for the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.


The water was waist-high in some neighbourhoods, and water levels were rapidly increasing, according to Abreu.


“We are unfortunately expecting devastating floods here in Pemba. A search-and-rescue team is being mobilized,” Abreu added.


Since the cyclone hit land earlier this week, five people have been killed in Mozambique and three died in the Comoros islands, according to disaster management.


International aid organization Care reported “devastating destruction” in many communities in Mozambique’s north.


Around 700,000 people have been affected by the cyclone in the province of Cabo Delgado, according to initial estimates, said Care.


Cyclone Kenneth first hit the Comoros islands earlier this week, and on Thursday night barrelled into northern Mozambique, hitting the southern African nation’s Cabo Delgado province with winds of about 120 kilometres an hour.


The World Meterological Organization (WMO) said there was no record of two storms of such intensity striking Mozambique in the same season, referencing Cyclone Idai, which last month killed hundreds and displaced tens of thousands in Mozambique, Malawi and Zimbabwe. — dpa


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