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UN: 50 dead in Moz floods
13/01/2008 19:57 - (SA)
Maputo - Floods in Mozambique have killed about 50 people and displaced tens of thousands in the southern African nation, a UN humanitarian agency said on Sunday.
Some 30 000 people have been evacuated from flooded areas over the past 10 days, while another 72 000 have had their houses destroyed or required aid, said Odile Bulten of the UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
"There are many more people at risk that will have to be moved to higher ground," she told AFP.
"Aid agencies are currently taking stock of what the needs are."
Low-lying districts along the Zambezi River have been hit by floods caused by unusually early torrential rains in the river basin.
The government declared a red alert on January 3, and water was being released from the Cahora Bassa Dam at a rate of 6 600 cubic metres per second as river levels continue to rise.
The UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) last week appealled for $2.4m to help flood victims.
Mozambique is often affected by extreme weather conditions.
Floods caused by torrential rains claimed 700 lives in the former Portuguese colony in 2001 and 2002.
Last year, flooding left around 30 people dead and 80 000 homeless.
Enough relief for two weeks
Bulten said the government had put early warning and contingency measures in place ahead of the wet season, and aid agencies had enough humanitarian stock in the country for about two weeks.
This included food, blankets, covers for temporary shelter and water purifying tablets.
Thousands were being housed in schools and other government buildings serving as resettlement centres.
The Zambezi is fed by tributaries from neighbouring Zimbabwe and Zambia, both of which have also been affected by downpours.
Some 3 000 people have been left homeless in Zambia, while three have died in Zimbabwe.
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