Mozambique: Northern provinces on alert for heavy rain from Tuesday

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Mozambique: Northern provinces on alert for heavy rain from Tuesday

7:52 CAT | 26 Mar 2024

Image: @jnmet/X

Mozambique’s national meteorological institute (INAM) on Monday warned of moderate to heavy rainfall over the next 24 hours in Cabo Delgado, Nampula and Niassa provinces, in the north, following the bad weather recorded since Sunday in the south.

Rain, accompanied by thunderstorms and gusty winds, could be recorded from Tuesday, with rainfall reaching up to 50 millimetres in 24 hours, INAM said in a statement.

In the same warning, the meteorological institute predicts continued moderate and locally heavy rain with thunder and gusty winds in the provinces of Manica, Sofala and Zambézia, in central Mozambique.

Southern Mozambique experienced heavy rain on Sunday, with several neighbourhoods in the cities of Maputo and Matola flooded and roads impassable.

INAM predicts continued rains in the south, in Inhambane, Maputo and Gaza, noting, however, that “they tend to slow down today, with the possibility of weak rains prevailing from tomorrow [Tuesday] onwards”.

READ: Indian Ocean: Severe Tropical Storm Gamane tracking south-southeastward off the northeast coast of Madagascar as of March 26

In a statement, the Southern Regional Water Administration (ARA-SUL) called for precautionary measures in the face of rising water levels in the Movene and Calichane river basins in Maputo.

“In addition, the retention capacity of the Pequenos Libombos dam is reduced following the passage of tropical cyclone “Filipo” (which hit the south of the country just over a week ago). Be on alert and take appropriate safety measures,” the document states.

The current rainy season in Mozambique, which began in October, has already caused the deaths of 135 people and affected 116,334 others, according to a report consulted by Lusa on Thursday.

Of the 135 deaths recorded since October and until Monday, 57 were caused by lightning, 31 by cholera, 24 by drowning, 20 by houses collapsing and three by animal attacks, according to the report by the National Institute for Disaster Risk Management and Reduction (INGD).

Mozambique is considered one of the countries most severely affected by global climate change, facing cyclical floods and tropical cyclones during the rainy season, which runs from October to April.

Severe Tropical Storm #Gamane has formed near northeast Madagascar & will continue to bring spells of heavy rain to northeast #Madagascar through Thursday. Gamane will drift southeastward & can impact #Mauritius & #Reunion Island this weekend. pic.twitter.com/Bf7QGT8unJ

— Jason Nicholls 💙 (@jnmet) March 26, 2024