Red Cross supports cyclone survivors

Malawi Red Cross Society has donated food and non-food items to 680 Cyclone Freddy survivors in Mangochi and Balaka districts.

Speaking on Tuesday during the handover at Nansenga Primary School in Traditional Authority (T/A) Mapira in Mangochi, Malawi Red Cross Society communication and resource mobilisation specialist Felix Washon said they wanted to help the survivors prevent malnutrition due to lack of food.

“The gesture is part of recovery plan we are implementing to cushion people from the effects of Cyclone Freddy,” he said.

Washon said they are still implementing activities to alleviate the suffering caused by the cyclone. He cited the construction of houses and giving survivors relief items as some of the initiatives.

Margaret Kazembe from Saitimgawe Village in the area, thanked Malawi Red Cross for the items, saying it was a big relief as she was facing food shortage.

“The items have come at the right time. I am one of the survivors who lost everything, including crops due to the disaster,” she said.

The items include maize flour, soya pieces, cooking oil, salt, sugar, mosquito nets, plastic buckets and soap.

The donation was funded by Kuwait Red Crescent Society.

In March this year, the Southern Region experienced Cyclone Freddy which killed 679 people, displaced 659 278 while 530 people were declared missing.

Distribution of humanitarian assistance and relocating some survivors to safer areas are underway.

The Department for Disaster Management Affairs has since appealed to communities living in flood-prone areas to relocate to safe places.