As Cyclone Chido leaves a trail of devastation in Mozambique's Cabo Delgado province, the death toll rises to 75 amid ongoing challenges from a regional insurgency and climate change.
Cyclone Chido's Impact Escalates: Death Toll Surges to 75 in Mozambique
Cyclone Chido's Impact Escalates: Death Toll Surges to 75 in Mozambique
Mozambique's Cyclone Chido worsens a humanitarian crisis in an already conflict-ridden region, prompting urgent calls for assistance.
The death toll from Cyclone Chido’s destruction in Mozambique has tragically increased to 75, as official reports indicate nearly double the previously reported figures. The cyclone, which made landfall earlier this week, struck the northern province of Cabo Delgado, an area already suffering from a prolonged insurgency linked to extremist forces backed by the Islamic State.
According to Mozambique’s National Institute for Natural Disasters, the storm has resulted in 69 fatalities in the province, while injuring around 740 individuals. Many deaths were recorded after rescue teams managed to access isolated areas devastated by the cyclone, facing challenges traveling through washed-out dirt roads. In the Mecufi district, official reports relay that virtually all buildings have been flattened. “What you see is utter destruction,” lamented Isadora Zoni, a reporting officer for the United Nations’ refugee agency, after surveying the catastrophic scenes in Mecufi and other affected areas.
As one of the globe's least affluent nations, Mozambique is acutely vulnerable to climate change, regularly facing storms originating from the southern Indian Ocean. The recent cyclone caused severe damage, obliterating mud walls and reducing wooden structures to splinters. Images shared by Zoni reveal the devastation, including the maternity health clinic’s corrugated-iron roof ripped away, leaving beds and medical equipment in disarray. In lieu of a classroom, crumpled schoolbooks remain—the only remnants after educational facilities were turned to ruins.
In Cabo Delgado province, pre-existing conflicts have already seen countless residents displaced, with hundreds of thousands fleeing due to ongoing insurgent activities. Reports estimate that at least 10,000 individuals living in makeshift tent accommodations were adversely impacted by the cyclone in Chiure district. Zoni highlighted the compounded misfortune for these individuals, exacerbating their lives significantly through a mix of political conflict and climate-related adversities.
As Cyclone Chido swept across the southern Indian Ocean, it exhibited powerful wind speeds reaching 115 miles per hour, classifying it as a Category 3 hurricane by Atlantic standards. It also wreaked havoc on Mayotte, a French archipelago, where at least 31 lives were lost, with more casualties feared.
The cyclone has now moved inland towards Zimbabwe following its destructive passage in Mozambique. The United Nations Refugee Agency warns that Cyclone Chido may herald a season of heightened rainfall and storm activity, which historically brings significant cyclone and flood threats to the region.
Past cyclones, such as Tropical Cyclone Freddy and Cyclone Gombe, compounded the plight of Mozambique over the last two years, leading to increased displacement for nearly 140,000 people due to extreme weather conditions. The ongoing situation underscores the pressing humanitarian needs within this vulnerable nation as it grapples with both political and environmental crises.
