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Cyclone Freddy continues to wreak havoc in Malawi. A final report on Tuesday reported at least 190 dead and several hundred injured in this poor and landlocked country. The NGO Doctors Without Borders fears, for its part, a “resurgence of cholera” on the spot.
Cyclone Freddy, the record longest hitter in southern Africa twice, continues to wreak havoc in Malawi. A new report on Tuesday, March 14, reports at least “190 dead, 584 injured and 37 missing”, announced in a press release the National Office for Disaster Management.
A previous report, Monday, counted 99 dead and it might increase further as the research, still in progress, advances. Malawi has so far paid the heaviest price for the return of the tropical cyclone, which has followed a looping path rarely recorded by meteorologists.
After making landfall for the second time over the weekend in Mozambique, killing at least 10 people, Freddy headed in the early hours of Monday towards southern neighboring Malawi. A state of disaster has been declared in the region of Blantyre, the economic capital epicenter of the disaster.
In the township of Chilobwe, near Blantyre, stunned residents stood frozen in front of the remains of houses washed away by the mudslides. The wind died down but the rain continued to fall.
“We are helpless and no one is there to help us,” said John Witman, 80, soaked despite a raincoat and a woolen hat. He is looking for his son-in-law, who disappeared when his house collapsed, swept away by the sudden rising waters.
>> Cyclone Freddy: anatomy of an extraordinary weather phenomenon
Residents say they believe dozens of bodies are still there, buried in the mud. Excavators have been deployed in some places. The day before, families and rescuers searched the ground with their bare hands in the pouring rain.
“Very low vaccination coverage” in the area hit by Cyclone Freddy
The hospital in the region is “overwhelmed by the influx of wounded”, warned in a press release Doctors Without Borders (MSF), present on the spot. “Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital alone received 220 people, including 42 adults and 43 children who were declared dead on arrival.”
The NGO fears in particular “a resurgence of cholera”. “We have moved the cholera treatment centers close to the hospital to ensure patient safety. Our main fear is a further increase in cholera cases, especially as vaccination coverage in Blantyre is very low” , also explains MSF.
“We have moved the processing centers from #cholera near the hospital to ensure patient safety. Our main fear is a further increase in cholera cases, especially since vaccination coverage in Blantyre is very low.
— MSF France (@MSF_france) March 14, 2023
A few kilometers away, at Chimkwankhunda, Steve Panganani Matera points to a huge field of dripping mud. “There were lots of houses here, they’re all gone,” he said, sheltered under a flimsy umbrella.
Under a heavy sky, some try to pass the maroon waters which break from the top of the hills. They stagger on makeshift bridges made of two planks thrown between the scree.
Nearly 20,000 people in the country have been affected by the weather, according to the UN.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said in a statement that he was “saddened by the loss of life”.
A “very rare” climatic phenomenon
Freddy had hit southern Africa for the first time at the end of February. After an unprecedented crossing of more than 10,000 km from east to west in the Indian Ocean, it made landfall in Madagascar before hitting Mozambique. The death toll was then 17.
Recharging in intensity and humidity over warm seas, with winds in excess of 220 km/h, Freddy then turned around, returning to swoop down on southern Africa two weeks later. He killed 10 people last week on his way back to Madagascar.
“It is very rare for these cyclones to feed once more and once more”, underlines Coleen Vogel, climate expert at the South African University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg, questioning climate change.
Freddy formed off Australia in early February and has been plaguing the Indian Ocean for 36 days. Tropical Cyclone John lasted 31 days in 1994.
The southwest Indian Ocean is crossed by tropical storms and cyclones several times a year during the hurricane season, which runs from November to April.
With AFP