 "This handout picture taken and distributed by UNICEF on December 17, 2024 shows Cyclone Chido making its landfall near Pemba in northern Mozambique. Photo- AFP")
At least 34 people have been killed and hundreds of missing after Cyclone Chido swept across Mozambique, the National Institute of Risk and Disaster Management announced Tuesday.
The cyclone first hit the country on Sunday at the Cabo Delgado province, where 28 people were killed, the centre said, releasing its latest information as of Monday evening.
Read Also: Mozambique Violence: Key Trade Routes Affected as S. Africa Shuts Main Border | Firstpost AfricaThree other people died in Nampula province and three in Niassa, further inland, it said.
According to Red Cross, more than 200 of its volunteers were missing on the French Indian Ocean territory of Mayotte, after Cyclone Chido ripped through the islands.
“Winds of up to 220 km/h caused by Cyclone Chido have devastated the French overseas territory of Mayotte. It’s feared that more than 200… volunteers are missing,” the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) said on X.
Read Also: Mozambique Violence: Two State Buildings Set Ablaze By Protesters, 20 Injured | Firstpost AfricaAnother 319 people were reported injured by the cyclone, which brought winds of around 260 kilometres (160 miles) an hour and heavy rainfall of around 250 millimetres (10 inches) in 24 hours, the centre said.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsNearly 23,600 homes and 170 fishing boats were destroyed and 175,000 people affected by the storm, it added.
Chido struck a part of northern Mozambique that is regularly battered by cyclones and is already vulnerable because of conflict and underdevelopment.
The cyclone landed in Mozambique after hitting the Indian Ocean island of Mayotte, where it is feared to have killed hundreds of people.
It moved to Malawi on Monday and was expected to dissipate Tuesday near Zimbabwe, which had also been on alert for heavy rains caused by the storm.
With inputs from agencies.