Cyclone Freddy: Death toll in Malawi and Mozambique passes 200

The death toll from Cyclone Freddy in Malawi and Mozambique passed 200 on Tuesday after the record-breaking storm triggered floods and landslips in its second strike on Africa in less than three weeks.

Rescue workers warned that more victims were likely as they scoured destroyed neighbourhoods for survivors even as hopes dwindled.

The fierce storm delivered its second punch to southeastern Africa starting at the weekend, its second landfall since late February after brewing off Australia and traversing the Indian Ocean. Heavy downpour accompanied by the storm paralysed about 10 districts forcing the Malawian government to declare a State of Disaster in the affected regions.

In a letter seen by the Nation, Colleen Zamba, Malawi’s Secretary to the President and Cabinet, wrote that the government ‘noted with grave concern’ the shattering impacts of cyclone Freddy. Quoting the Disaster Preparedness and Relief Act, he directed that the said districts, including Blantyre –the country’s second largest city to be under State of Disaster.

“The government is already responding to the emergencies, rendering urgent assistance to all affected districts and appealing for local and international support for all families affected by this disaster,” said Ms Zamba.

Already, school activities in the affected areas have been suspended until March 17.

Malawi's government said at least 190 people were killed with 584 injured and 37 missing, while authorities in neighbouring Mozambique reported 20 deaths and 24 injured. 

"The situation is very dire," said Guilherme Botelho, emergency project coordinator for Doctors Without Borders (MSF) in Malawi.

"There are many casualties, either wounded, missing or dead, and the numbers will only increase in the coming days," he said.

Many people perished in mudslides that washed away homes in the country's commercial capital, Blantyre.

Across the country, nearly 59,000 people have been affected and more than 19,000 displaced, with many now sheltering in schools and churches.

Freddy was still causing localised rains and winds in southern Malawi on Tuesday, but conditions were expected to ease from Wednesday evening, according to the country's meteorological service.

'We feel helpless'

In Chilobwe, a township outside Blantyre, stunned survivors surveyed flattened houses and other structures as rain continued to fall.

John Witman, in his 80s, dressed in a raincoat and woollen hat with his 10 family members in tow, stood in front of what had been his son-in-law's home. It was now just rocks and gushing water, the house having been swept away.

"I wish that we could find him, and find closure. We feel helpless because no one is here to help us," he said.

In Chimwankhunda, a few kilometres away, Steve Panganani Matera, wearing a high-visibility green jacket, pointed to a mound of mud.

"There were plenty of houses, but they are all gone," Matera said. "There are plenty of bodies down there in the mud."

Fourteen-year-old Mayeso Chinthenga said his family's house was taken by the cascading mud.

"We were out looking for firewood when we saw rocks rolling down the mountain so we ran for safety. Some of our neighbours died on the spot," he said at a nearby school.

President Lazarus Chakwera, who returned to the country on Tuesday after attending a United Nations conference in Qatar, hailed the relief efforts by volunteers.

"We have arrived to a devastated nation," he said in a statement. 

Rare loopback

Cyclone Freddy reached landlocked Malawi early on Monday morning after sweeping through Mozambique at the weekend.

The storm has unofficially broke the World Meteorological Organization's benchmark as the longest-lasting tropical cyclone on record, set in 1994 for a 31-day storm named John. 

Freddy became a named storm on February 6, making landfall in Madagascar on February 21 and sweeping over the island before reaching Mozambique on February 24, claiming nearly two dozen lives in both countries and affecting nearly 400,000 people.

It then returned to the Indian Ocean and gathered new energy over its warm waters, then reversed course to come back much more powerful at the weekend, packing wind gusts of up to 200 km/h (125 mph), according to Emmanuel Cloppet of the Meteo-France weather service.

Meteorologists say that cyclones tracking across the entire Indian Ocean are very infrequent -- the last occurred in 2000 -- and that Freddy's loopback was even more exceptional.

"It's a very rare thing that these cyclones feed themselves over and over again," said climate expert Coleen Vogel at South Africa's University of the Witwatersrand. 

The cyclone has piled more woes on Malawi, already grappling with the deadliest cholera outbreak in its history, which has killed over 1,600 people since last year.

Fears of a cholera resurgence after the outbreak started in the aftermath of another tropical storm last year have been exacerbated by vaccines shortages.

Early warnings

Before the storm hit the Southern African countries, the WMO says that early warning systems from France’s meteorological department warned the affected African countries of an impending disaster.

“Freddy is having a major socio-economic and humanitarian impact on affected communities. The death toll has been limited by accurate forecasts and early warnings, and coordinated disaster risk reduction action on the ground - although even one casualty is one too many," said Dr Johan Stander, WMO Services Director.

Climate justice advocates are disturbed by the impact of lives and livelihoods that the cyclone has brought to the affected people. 

“We express our sympathies to the communities and partners affected by this disaster and call on humanitarian agencies to move with speed to save lives. Needless to say, disasters such as these are further evidence of the injustice suffered by the nations that contribute least to the climate crisis, as they bear the brunt of the crisis, by way of worsening climate impacts,” said Landry Ninteretse, 350Africa.org Regional Director.

“This situation calls for the world’s biggest polluters like TotalEnergies to commit to significantly lowering their greenhouse gas emissions by moving away from fossil fuels like the Mozambique LNG project, as well as for the wealthy nations and development finance institutions such as the African Development Bank (AfDB) to deliver climate finance to help the most affected build resilience to impacts of the climate crisis,” he added.