Eight dead after cyclone hit Puntland in Somalia

GAROWE, Somalia (Reuters) – A cyclone that struck parts of Somalia this week killed eight people and displaced thousands, flooded farmland and could worsen a locust infestation, a United Nations official and agencies said.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) said Thursday that Tropical Cyclone Gati made landfall in the semi-autonomous region of Puntland on Sunday and eased on Tuesday, but moderate and light rains continue to fall.

Eight Yemeni fishermen were killed in the cyclone, Mohamed Yusuf Boli, commissioner of the Hafun coastal district, told Reuters.

“He also destroyed many boats and houses. The town is in the water and in a bad situation,” Boli added.

In addition to the deaths, UNOCHA said the cyclone had displaced 42,000 people from their homes.

“The cyclone has disrupted livelihoods by destroying fishing gear, killing livestock and flooding agricultural land and crops.” the agency said in a report.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) said earlier this week that the cyclone could also allow swarms of immature desert locusts in Ethiopia’s Hargeisa and Jigjiga to mature faster and lay eggs.

The effect of the cyclone could also allow the swarms to move southeast to the Ogaden region and lay eggs there as well, FAO said.

The insect infestation plaguing Somalia is part of a once-in-a-generation succession of swarms that have spread across East Africa and the Red Sea region since late 2019, driven by unusual weather patterns.