UPDATE - Death toll from Cyclone Chido in Mozambique rises to 73

UPDATES WITH LATEST INFORMATION FROM NATIONAL DISASTER MANAGEMENT AGENCY, REVISES DECK

By Jamal Jamal

LILONGWE, Malawi (AA) - The death toll in from Cyclone Chido in Mozambique has risen to 73, disaster management officials announced on Thursday.

In a flash update, Luisa Meque, chairperson of the country’s National Disaster Risk Management Institute (INGD), said while the “assessment of the extent of the damage that the cyclone has caused to the Southern African nation continues, more bodies are being identified in the process.”

“We can’t ascertain the exact number of people who have died as a result of the storm,” she said.

Meque said that the number of injured is also increasing on a daily basis.

“Our situation is quite horrendous and overwhelming. We need a lot of support for us to establish the exact number of fatalities, otherwise, it’s becoming extremely hard for us to find bodies, because some are deep buried after buildings had collapsed on them,” she said.

“Much as the storm has calmed down, there is a likelihood that number of fatalities is going to rise as we are still assessing the extent of the damage,” Meque said.

About 2.5 million people are said to be affected by the cyclone, Meque said.

According to Louise Eagleton, Unicef Country Representative for Mozambique, about 90,000 children have been “worst affected” by the cyclone.

“Almost in all the affected communities, there are growing numbers of affected children. These are children who are struggling to find sustenance and shelter. Children are bearing the blunt of the cyclone. The current situation in the country is heart-rending,” Eagleton said.

On Wednesday, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs disbursed out $4m in emergency response to the cyclone.

In neighboring Malawi, according to the country’s Department of Disaster and Management Affairs (DoDMA) the death toll has reached 13 and 45,000 people in five districts of the Southern region have been rendered homeless.

On Dec.15, Tropical cyclone Chido made landfall in Mozambique, bringing strong winds, thunderstorms and heavy rainfall exceeding 250millimeters (9.84 inches) in 24hours.

The cyclone then moved to Malawi.