MBOMBELA – The tropical storm has been described as one of the worst since Cyclone Eline of 2000. Areas in Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Malawi have been devastated since the storm hit on Thursday and Friday.
According to the World Food Programme, preliminary projections indicated that at least 1,7 million people were affected in the direct path of the cyclone in Mozambique and Zimbabwe, with a further 920 000 hit in Malawi.
The humanitarian workers are faced with major challenges trying to reach the victims of the floods. Rivers have washed away roads and bridges.
Electricity lines and cellphone towers have been damaged and as have some airports.
These areas are without electricity and communications are limited, which is hindering relief operations.
The city of Beira, one of the largest in Mozambique, with half a million inhabitants, was hit the hardest by the cyclone.
White River-based Mercy Air CEO, Allan Luus said, “A lot of the infrastructure in Beira has been damaged. This makes relief and rescue work difficult as we not sure if they are able to refuel their helicopter.”
He said the lack of communication from the relief workers made it difficult to know what exactly was happening on the ground.
“Situations keep changing. We hear one moment the water levels in areas are going down and the next they are going up. So constant communication is vital, but non-existent at the moment.”
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In Zimbabwe, 31 people to have been killed. A further 71 are said to be missing and the death toll is expected to rise when the full scale of the damage becomes clear as the floodwaters subside.
The death toll in central Mozambique rose to 48 on Saturday. The victim count is yet to be completed, as there are places which are difficult to reach due to rising river levels.
The Mozambique National Meteorology Institute forecasts more heavy rains, severe thunderstorms and strong winds gusts are due to continue until Thursday.
The Red Cross in Malawi tweeted that the cyclone had left thousands displaced. Communities are now facing a second threat of flash floods.
Mercy Air, a non-profit Christian organisation, started flying supplies to areas affected by the floods last week. They operate two fixed-wing aircraft (Cessna 310 and a Quest Kodiak) and a two Airbus Group AS350 helicopters.
“We got there a week ago and have been flying to Beira, down the Zambezi River area and to Tete. We have also been helping in Caia and the Delta area,” said Luus.
He said they were expecting a lot more flooding. “We are sending another helicopter to help in the disaster relief. We are flying supplies and drinking water. Another problem afterwards is cholera and dysentery due to a lack of proper drinking water.”
Luus said this was not the first time they had helped Mozambiqe and Zimbabwe. “We have been helping for many years during the flooding season in Mozambique.”
He said the biggest challenge was communication. “There was no cellphone reception there. Yesterday we finally managed to get some SMSes.”
The non-profit organisation Pediatric Care Africa, also based in White River, has also reached out.
According to its spokesman, Marcelle Clark, they are busy collecting funds for water, baby food, clothes and other necessities.
Pediatric Care Africa’s Dr Andre Hattingh headed for Mozambique on Monday morning. They are expecting more than 100 000 children who need help with food and other supplies.
“The children are in need of medical assistance due to buildings that continue to collapse and illnesses,” said Clark.
She said they had placed donation boxes at Montana Nursery in Mbombela and White River.
Off-Road Rescue Unit (ORRU) South Africa sent about 50 rescue workers on Monday. ORRU’s Anton Strydom said Pieter du Plessis, Pieter Visser and Andrew Geldenhuys, from Mbombela, were part of the team.
To donate go to www.pediatriccareafrica.org and for more information about Mercy Air, visit www.mercyair.org.
