Flooding still threat as cyclone fades
Storm kills hundreds; numbers likely to grow
BLANTYRE, Malawi — After killing hundreds and displacing thousands as it barreled through Mozambique and Malawi since late last week, Cyclone Freddy has dissipated over land, but flooding remains a threat in both countries, a regional monitoring center said Wednesday.
The cyclone has killed at least 225 people in Malawi’s southern region including Blantyre, the country’s financial hub, according to authorities. Another 88,000 people are displaced. In neighboring Mozambique, officials said at least 20 people have died since the storm made landfall Saturday night in the port town of Quelimane. Over 45,000 people are still holed up in shelters, with about 800 square miles still under water, according to the EU’S Copernicus satellite system.
“There are many casualties — either wounded, missing, or dead, and the numbers will only increase in the coming days,” said Guilherme Botelho, the emergency project coordinator in Blantyre for Doctors Without Borders. Malawi, which has been battling a cholera outbreak, is at risk of a resurgence of the disease, Botelho said, “especially since the vaccine coverage in Blantyre is very poor.”
The aid organization has suspended its outreach programs to protect its staff against flash floods and landslides but is supporting cyclone relief efforts at a local hospital.
Freddy was projected to exit back to the sea on Wednesday but has since waned and is no longer classed as a tropical cyclone.
But even with the cyclone having dissipated, “the emergency will not be over for many communities as rain from upland areas continues to flood downstream areas over the coming days,” said Lucy Mwangi, the country director for Malawi at the aid organization Concern Worldwide.