Mozambique has ordered the immediate evacuation of residents in low-lying communities across Inhambane, Gaza and Sofala provinces following warnings of a possible second wave of flooding.
President of the National Institute for Disaster Risk Management and Reduction (INGD), Luísa Meque urged affected communities to remain vigilant and relocate to safer areas to avoid loss of lives and property.
She disclosed that “authorities have identified designated sites to accommodate displaced persons should the need arise to activate emergency shelter centres.”
Technical teams are on the ground in the affected provinces to monitor conditions and reinforce preventive measures.
The call comes as Mozambique continues to grapple with one of its deadliest rainy seasons in recent years.
Since October, floods and storms have killed about 280 people and affected nearly 900,000, according to INGD figures.
More than 15,000 houses have been destroyed while hundreds of schools, health units and places of worship have been damaged.
Floods claimed at least 43 lives in January while Cyclone Gezani, which struck Inhambane in mid-February, caused four more deaths and displaced thousands.
The disaster has also devastated agriculture, with over 267,000 hectares of farmland lost and more than half a million livestock killed.
Mozambique’s rainy season typically lasts until April, raising fears that further storms could worsen the humanitarian crisis.
AP