Cyclone IDAI hit Mozambique, The Province of Sofala, Manica and Zambézia on March 14. It caused a humanitarian disaster of great proportion\”, More than 1,000 people may have been killed after the cyclone hit the country on 14th of March and more than 2.5 million people were hit directly by the cyclone.

Idai made landfall near the port city of Beira in Sofala province, the winds were fast up to 177 km/h (106 mph).

\”we say is one of the worst weather-related disasters ever to the Province of Beira”

The City of Beira was severely damaged and the people had no time to plan what to do and were to go. We could easily see people floating in water and it was everywhere. Besieged people asking for help. People were on top of their roofs, made up of zinc sheets. Others under flood waters. \”We can only imagine that they had been there for more than two or three days, without food and without clean drinking water.\” It was like a war!

About 50km stretch of land or more was under water after the Buzi River burst into banks. Floods of up to six meters deep had caused \”incredible devastation. Homes and even bodies were washed away over a huge area.

Even though Manica and Zambézia was also affected in some Districts, Beira needs all the logistical support that it can get.

Mozambique\’s government says 100,000 people need to be rescued from Beira
Nelson Moda was in Beira in Mozambique when the storm hit. He told his story to the BBC OS radio program:

It was my son\’s birthday on 14 March and we were all at home. In the morning this strong storm started and it was moving the city, the trees, and the houses.
It was like a war. It was horrific. The children were crying and we were hiding in the bathroom. I could see people dying and the house where I live has been destroyed.
There are children who now have no father, no mother, and no home. I saw the city where I grew up being destroyed with my naked eyes.

What are the relief teams doing?
Local officials are distributing rice and maize from the national food reserve to those displaced. Besides so much effort from everyone, Mozambique\’s National Institute for Disaster Management is housing 3,800 families in Sofala province. In Beira there is an outbreak of waterborne diseases, including cholera, due to contamination of the water supply and disruption of usual water treatment.

Written by: Flaide Macheze (RWA Mozambique)