SADC team joins Mozambique flood rescue effort

Emergency Response Team Deployed in Mozambique Following Severe Flooding

The Southern African Development Community (SADC) has dispatched a specialist unit to assist local authorities in Mozambique after severe flooding affected over 650,000 individuals. The team, which arrived on Sat, includes experts in logistics, search and rescue, public health, communications, and civil-military coordination. They are supporting Mozambique’s national humanitarian efforts in rescue and recovery operations.

Impact on Infrastructure and Communities

The flooding has caused significant damage to infrastructure, including roads, schools, and health centers. Gaza Province is the most severely affected, with nearly 392,000 people impacted and four fatalities reported. Additional casualties include three in Maputo Province, one in Maputo City, and four in Sofala Province, bringing the total death toll to at least twelve.

Continuous heavy rainfall, along with controlled dam releases, has impacted more than 700,000 people, with children comprising over half of those affected. Vast areas of farmland have been devastated, exacerbating the situation.

The World Health Organization has reported severe disruptions to health services, particularly in Gaza and Maputo provinces, due to the destruction of at least 44 health facilities. This has left tens of thousands without access to necessary medical care. Approximately 50,000 individuals have been relocated to temporary shelters, where they face limited or nonexistent health services.

There is an urgent need to restore essential services, deploy mobile health teams, and maintain care continuity for individuals with chronic conditions. The risk of hunger and disease is increasing, as extreme weather conditions have destroyed crops relied upon by small-scale farmers, and the threat of water-borne diseases, such as cholera, remains high.

Based on reporting by Africanews.