LILONGWE — The death toll from Tropical Cyclone Chido's remnants in Malawi rose
to seven, with nearly 35,000 people stranded, the African country's Department
of Disaster Management Affairs (DoDMA) said on Tuesday.
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- DoDMA Commissioner Charles Kalemba said in a statement that
a total of seven deaths have been recorded in five districts, while
approximately 34,741 people from 7,721 households have been affected, marking a
sharp rise from Monday's report of 1,800 affected families.
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- According to the statement, the department also registered
16 injuries, and at least 20 councils in the southern and central regions,
including the national capital of Lilongwe, have experienced "mild to
severe damages".
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- The cyclone left a trail of destruction as it blew off roofs
of dwelling houses and public infrastructure on the way.
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- The Malawian government, through the DoDMA, Malawi Red Cross
Society, and other agencies, has deployed standby resources for search and
rescue exercises. Schools in southern Malawi, which were suspended Monday,
reopened Tuesday after the authorities decided that it was safe to do so.
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- The Department of Climate Change and Meteorological Services
said in a statement on Monday that Cyclone Chido, which made its landfall in
neighbouring Mozambique on Sunday, has exited Malawi and is no longer a threat
to the southern African country.
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- The DoDMA has since decommissioned the search and rescue
operations teams, which were earlier deployed to risk areas in anticipation of
emergency in the wake of Cyclone Chido.
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- The government, through the Department of Disaster
Management Affairs, the Malawi Red Cross Society, and other agencies, has
deployed standby resources for search and rescue operations.
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- Chido originated as a tropical depression in the
southeastern Indian Ocean basin between December 7 and 8.
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- A tropical depression is characterised by a region of low
atmospheric pressure over an ocean, accompanied by a circular wind pattern
generated by thunderstorms. These systems exhibit maximum sustained wind speeds
of 61 km/h or lower.
