Tropical Cyclone Chido yesterday shook some parts of the country, with the Eastern Region having the biggest impact hours after it made a landfall in Nacala, Mozambique yesterday.
In the affected areas, heavy rains and strong winds were the order of the day and the Department of Climate Change and Meteorological Services (MET) has since appealed to Malawians to take weather updates seriously.
MET director Lucy Mtilatila in an interview yesterday advised Malawians living in flood-prone areas to immediately relocate to upland to enhance their safety.
with brick in Ntcheu | Malawi Red Cross
She warned that Cyclone Chido, which is likely to affect the entire Southern Region as well as Ntcheu and Dedza districts in the Central Region, may cause damage to infrastructure and flooding in some parts of the country.
Said Mtilatila: “For those living in houses which are not strong enough to withstand strong winds this is the time that probably they should seek shelter somewhere at least for tonight [last night] and then they can come back after the cyclone has passed.
“People should be following these warnings seriously to make sure that we reduce loss of life.”
As at 4pm yesterday, some districts, including Zomba, Machinga and Mulanje had started experiencing heavy rains about two hours after MET issued a statement at midday stating that the tropical storm was expected to bring heavy downpours and strong winds from yesterday evening.
In separate interviews, Chikwawa district commissioner Nardin Kamba and his Mulanje counterpart David Maxwell Gondwe, whose districts are among those likely to be affected by Chido, said they have reactivated tropical cyclone response structures to boost preparedness.
Kamba said some communities in Mazongoza and Makhuwira areas in Chikwawa have already started relocating to safety places.
On his part, Gondwe observed that no one has relocated to safer places in Mulanje ahead of the storm.
But he said Mulanje District Council was liaising with the Department of Disaster Management Affairs (Dodma) to start disbursing relief items in advance.
Speaking in an interview yesterday, Dodma spokesperson Chipiliro Khamula said through various clusters and humanitarian partners, the department has deployed search and rescue teams and equipment in districts at risk.
He said: “We have also prepositioned relief items, including food and non-food items such as maize, tents and medical supplies.
“The department has also established an emergency operation centre in Blantyre for enhanced preparedness, anticipatory and response coordination.”
In recent years, Malawi has been haunted by cyclones that have rendered thousands homeless, destroyed crop fields, washed away livestock and killed scores of people.
In March 2023, Malawi experienced one of the worst tropical cyclones on record which developed in the Western Indian Ocean and moved eastwards from Mozambique, influencing torrential rains over the Southern part of Malawi.
Dodma data showed that at least 2.2 million people were affected, including more than 659 000 who were displaced while over 530 were declared missing by mid-March 2023.
A Post-Disaster Needs Assessment projected the cost of the loss at $506.7 million while the cost of recovery and reconstruction was pegged at $680.4 million. To date, most infrastructure, including roads, schools and some health facilities damaged by Cyclone Freddy are yet to be restored
