Cyclone death toll in Mozambique rises to 45
This handout picture taken and distributed by UNICEF on December 17, 2024 shows children next to a damaged tree after Cyclone Chido made its landfall near Pemba in northern Mozambique. Cyclone Chido claimed at least 34 lives after sweeping across Mozambique, the National Institute of Risk and Disaster Management announced on December 17, 2024.
The cyclone first hit the country on December 15, 2024 at the Cabo Delgado province, where 28 people were killed, the centre said, releasing its latest information as of Monday evening. (Photo by Eduardo Mendes / UNICEF / AFP)
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(AFP) - The death toll from Cyclone Chido in Mozambique has risen by 11 to 45, the National Institute of Risk and Disaster Management announced Wednesday.
Initial figures released on Tuesday said the cyclone had claimed 34 lives after making landfall in Mozambique on Sunday at the northern Cabo Delgado province.
In its updated toll, the centre said 38 people were killed in Cabo Delgado, four in Nampula province and three in Niassa, further inland. One person was missing, it said.
Nearly 500 people were reported injured by the cyclone, which brought winds of around 260 kilometres (160 miles) an hour and heavy rainfall of around 250 millimetres (10 inches) in 24 hours, the centre said.
Nearly 24,000 homes were destroyed and another 12,300 partially destroyed, it said. More than 181,000 people affected by the storm.
Chido struck a part of northern Mozambique that is regularly battered by cyclones and is already vulnerable because of conflict and underdevelopment.
The cyclone landed in Mozambique after hitting the Indian Ocean island of Mayotte, where it is feared to have killed hundreds and possibly even thousands of people.
© Agence France-Presse
