Cyclone and floods in Mozambique: SOS Children update
22/02/2007
Floods that have plagued Mozambique for the past few months were added to today as cyclone Favio hit the central province of Inhambane.
Approximately 120,000 people have had to leave their homes in the Zambezi Valley as a result of the flooding, with a number of deaths and casualties already recorded. The effects of the cyclone are likely to exacerbate the current situation and increase the levels of the already swollen rivers.
The SOS Social Centre in Tete, which partners with a community near to the village, has been working on a food security project with a local community that lies along the banks of the River Rubuvwe, a tributary of the Zambezi. Sadly, the project, benefiting about 35 needy families, has been directly affected by the rising water and the vegetable plots, which the community had been tending, have been washed away.
Information received so far indicates that while some of the families have relocated due to fears of further flooding, their accommodation and limited infrastructure has not been damaged so far by the floods. Should the situation worsen, SOS Children have plans to minimise risks to the village and ensure a clean water supply.
So far, the worst of the weather has not affected any of the other SOS facilities or programmes, although news is expected about the nearly completed SOS Children’s Village in Inhambane following the cyclone. Read more here.
Relevant Countries: Mozambique.