The rain stopped for weeks and the rainy season ended in March, but several houses are still flooded in Maputo City and families continue to abandon their homes for fear of water-borne illnesses. In the neighborhoods of Magoanine “A” and Polana Caniço “A”, for example, dozens of houses are unoccupied.
There are still reports of difficult days, due to the negative consequences of the rain, in several neighborhoods of the country’s capital.
It’s just that some access roads remain impassable and there are families who still live in flooded houses.
Florindo Caetano has lived in the Polana Caniço “A” neighborhood with his family for over 20 years and his house has been flooded for over three months. The citizen told “O País” that this is the first time his house has been flooded for a long time.
“I have nothing to do, I can’t afford to leave the house. If I could, I would leave, but I have no place to go and living here has not been easy”, lamented Florindo Caetano.
One place to go is the questioning of the families in that neighborhood, families who are forced to do everything inside their homes, as is the case of the Langa family.
“We have done everything indoors. We only go out to get water, to go to the bathroom, to wash dishes and clothes. We can’t do the rest in the yard”, reported Ernesto Langa.
In the Langa family home, boots have become a must-have accessory for everyday life.
Residents even try to open small ditches to drain the water, but without success.
While the water does not dry up, the number of abandoned houses increases. In block 18, in the Magoanine “A” neighborhood, for example, there are more than 70 families who have been forced to leave their homes.
“There are only three houses still in use here in the area. The others were completely abandoned and the owners live in rented houses”, explained Alberto Monjane, head of the block.
Abandoned houses give way to tall grass, and with it, the emergence of mosquitoes and fears of waterborne diseases.
Families ask for the opening of ways to drain the water while they wait for safe spaces.
“The only thing we ask the Government is to intervene in the flooded neighborhoods, opening drainage ditches so that rainwater does not accumulate”, appealed Rita Chiluvane.
In Maputo City, more than 30,000 families were affected by rains and floods during the 2022/2023 rainy and cyclonic season.