Hundreds of thousands of people are in need of food, water and shelter after Cyclone Idai battered Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Malawi. As of Sunday, at least 847 people had been reported killed by the storm, the flooding it caused and heavy rains before it hit. Prayers for them!
Following is an outline of the disaster, according to government and United Nations officials.
MOZAMBIQUE
Cyclone Idai landed on the night of March 14 near the port city of Beira, bringing heavy winds and rains. Two major rivers, the Buzi and the Pungue, burst their banks, submerging entire villages and leaving bodies floating in the water.
- People killed: 602
- People injured: 1,641
- Houses damaged or destroyed: 239,682
- Crops damaged: 715,378 hectares
- People affected: 1.85 million
- Confirmed cholera cases: 2,424
- Confirmed cholera deaths: 5
ZIMBABWE
On March 16 the storm hit eastern Zimbabwe, where it flattened homes and flooded communities in the Chimanimani and Chipinge districts.
- People killed: 185 (government); 259 (U.N. migration agency).
- People injured: 200
- People displaced: 16,000 households
- People affected: 250,000
MALAWI
Before it arrived, the storm brought heavy rains and flooding to the lower Shire River districts of Chikwawa and Nsanje in Malawi’s south. The rains continued after the storm hit, compounding the misery of tens of thousands of people.
- People killed: 60
- People injured: 672
- People displaced: 19,328 households
- People affected: 868,895
I wasn’t bad when writting a few weeks ago that the death toll would probably pass 1000. And as we see, food shortages will become widespread around the world… I already see food prices rising around me! We are going towards the apocalypse!
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[Reuters]
