Flooded out in Beira: A month’s rainfall in just two days – Mozambique

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Flooded out in Beira: A month’s rainfall in just two days – Mozambique

9:41 CAT | 28 Feb 2017

Diário de Moçambique

Heavy rains on Sunday night continued to fall yesterday, flooding homes and forcing families on the outskirts of the city of Beira out into the open. Alto de Manga, Matacuane, Macurungo, Chota, Munhava and Ndunda are worst affected, with streets totally impassable to any form of motorized transport.

The poor state of drainage and sewage ditches in many neighborhoods made it practically certain that houses would be flooded, and a Diário de Moçambique reporter doing the rounds of the city neighbourhoods witnessed the sad scenario.

Several interviewees reported that their homes were flooded by the rains, and some were even left without a roof over their heads. Alves César Mussa said that he and his family had temporarily abandoned their house because it was flooded, while Elisa João Bosco said that she had only just escaped with her belongings.

“I’m on the street because my house was flooded, so I’m taking my possessions to my grandmother’s house in Manga. When the water goes down I’ll return to my house,” she said.

Chico António Bene, another resident, said that when his house started to flood, he and his family moved to the freeway. “My property has suffered, my house has flooded, the water level does not allow us to stay there. That’s why we’re out on the road. We are waiting for it to come down so we can go back,” he said.

Berta João, a resident of the Alto da Manga neighbourhood, said she lost most of her March food shopping. “I lost a bag of rice and 10 kilograms of flour – the water level did not permit me to recover anything. And since last night I have been on the street,” she said.

Achado Jamal, of the National Institute of Meteorology (INAM) in Sofala, said that 223.9 millimeters of rain fell on Sunday and yesterday in the city of Beira, almost the amount that would fall in and average February (296.2mm). Jamal predicted the weather would improve from today on, though without intermittent showers or heavy rain.

Jamal explained that the weather was due to atmospheric instability resulting from the interaction between air masses of different types. “INAM forecast the occurrence of moderate to strong (30 to 50 millimeters of precipitation in 24 hours) or strong rains (more than 50 millimeters in 24 hours), accompanied by severe thunderstorms and winds gusting up to 60 kmh, from the 25th February until today in the districts of Machanga, Chibabava, Buzi, Nhamatanda, Dondo, Muanza, Gorongosa, Cheringoma, Marromeu and Beira,” he said.

In response to the bad weather, INAM warns maritime concerns and the general population to take appropriate precautionary measures.