Hundreds of thousands of people across southern Africa have been displaced from their homes after heavy rains brought some of the worst flooding the region has seen in decades.
The rainy season is expected to continue for at least another month. More than 100 deaths have been confirmed so far across South Africa, Zimbabwe and Mozambique. Homes and farmland have been destroyed, according to the authorities.
Mozambique, the hardest-hit country, has suffered damage to infrastructure, cutting off communities from critical services and disrupting the distribution of vital supplies, according to the National Institute for Disaster Risk Management and Reduction.
Relief organizations there have painted a grim picture: Shortages of shelter, water, sanitation, food and health services have been reported in the provinces of Gaza, Inhambane, Sofala and Zambézia.
Guy Taylor, a spokesman in Mozambique for UNICEF, warned that lack of access to clean water and sanitation presented a serious risk of waterborne diseases such as cholera, as well as an increased threat of malaria. Even before this crisis, about four in 10 Mozambican children suffered from chronic malnutrition, he said.
“When children who have malnutrition are exposed to waterborne illness, even a bout of diarrhea can prove to be deadly,” Mr. Taylor added.
Forecasters said they expected further rainfall across Mozambique through at least early February, especially over northern parts of the country. The country’s rainy season typically runs through April, bringing hot, humid conditions and frequent heavy downpours, along with an increased risk of tropical cyclones.
Rescue workers in the country said this bout of flooding was the worst Mozambique has experienced since 2000, when heavy rains and a cyclone killed as many as 700 people.
Mr. Taylor said when he looked out of his window as he flew over Gaza, the land looked like an ocean. In Xai Xai, the provincial capital, he said he met with mothers who did not know where their children’s next meal would come from, having lost their homes, crops and animals.
The Southern African Development Community, a regional organization, has deployed emergency response teams to the hardest-hit areas. The United Nations and the European Union have donated health equipment, tents, hygiene items, nutrition supplies and educational materials.
In South Africa, the popular tourist destination Kruger National Park was hit with severe flooding that forced the evacuation of hundreds of tourists and staff. Park authorities said no deaths or injuries had been reported, but large areas remain inaccessible.
The severe flooding in South Africa began last December, with significantly wetter than average conditions in parts of Limpopo Province, in the northeast. By the end of December, the village of Haenertsburg had received 13 inches of rain, nearly three times its average for the month. Elevated rainfall continued into early January.
In neighboring Zimbabwe, at least 70 people have died and more than 1,000 homes have been destroyed since early January, the government’s disaster management agency said. Schools, roads and bridges were damaged or have been washed away by floodwaters.
Nazaneen Ghaffar is a Times reporter on the Weather team.
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