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Clouds flying over the city of Beira in Mozambique.
- Tropical Storm Chalane has hit Mozambique.
- But not much damage has been reported.
- The city of Beira has suffered some floods.
The powerful tropical storm Chalane made landfall near the city of Beira, in central Mozambique, early Wednesday morning, bringing heavy rain and winds, but less damage than was initially expected in an area devastated by a cyclone nearly two years.
Beira, a coastal city of 500,000 people, is home to Mozambique’s second-largest port, serving as a gateway to the region’s landlocked countries.
Myrta Kaulard, United Nations Resident Coordinator for Mozambique, said most of the rains were concentrated in an area north of Beira, where thousands of people were also resettled after Cyclone Idai about two years ago.
International aid agencies say tens of thousands of people are still displaced from Idai and living in camps.
Moz reports say Beira is fine. Chalane appears to have changed course somewhat affecting areas in Sofala towards Nyamapanda. Beira experienced some wind between 80 and 100 km / h compared to Idai, which was between 200 and 240 km / h. “Nyamapanda and parts of the Passover Highlands are most at risk. pic.twitter.com/5Kbq5OGqz4
– I love games ???? (@ KudaMatambo23) December 30, 2020
The storm had weakened when it crossed into Zimbabwe, where rain was expected, Mozambique’s meteorological services department said.
That means Beira could be vulnerable to flooding if rivers in eastern Zimbabwe, which flow into Mozambique, overflow, Kaulard told Reuters.
“What we are hearing is that some people in temporary shelters, precarious shelters, they lost a roof or something like that” in Beira, Kaulard told Reuters.
“But overall, the damage has been less than expected. We are far from having problems with Chalane, but we are all really relieved that the damage was not stronger and we hope that no flooding will occur.
International aid agencies will carry out a full assessment of Beira on Thursday, Kaulard said.
He said the agencies’ resources were already depleted by the humanitarian situation in the northern region of Cabo Delgado, where about half a million people have fled militant attacks.
In Zimbabwe, the government had begun evacuating the eastern parts of the country, where thousands of people were displaced by Cyclone Idai. The Zimbabwe Department of Meteorological Services said there was a high risk of flooding in the region.
The government postponed the reopening of schools scheduled for next week due to the storm and rising coronavirus infections.
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