Over 1,000 may have died in Mozambique after cyclone, says President Filipe Nyusi
Port city of Beira ‘90% destroyed’ as rescue operations continue in Zimbabwe
Maputo/Harare — A tropical cyclone that swept across Mozambique at the weekend may have killed more than 1,000 people, President Filipe Nyusi said as heavy rain continued to pound neighbouring Zimbabwe, where flooding left dozens more dead. “It’s clear that the next few days could be worse,” Nyusi said in comments broadcast on state radio. “If more than 1,000 lives have been lost, we won’t be surprised.” The death toll has risen sharply since Tropical Cyclone Idai made landfall almost directly over the Mozambican port city of Beira on Friday, knocking out communications networks and power plants before moving westward to Zimbabwe. The scale of the damage wrought by the storm is “massive and horrifying”, said Jamie LeSueur, who is leading an International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies assessment team in Beira. “It seems that 90% of the area is completely destroyed,” he said in a statement. Eskom, said the storm reduced the amount of electricity it imported from M...
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