Cyclone Kenneth kills one and leaves a trail of destruction across Mozambique

Hurricane Kenneth killed at least one person and left a trail of destruction in northern Mozambique, destroying houses, destroying trees and knocking out power plants, authorities said Friday.

The hurricane caused storms and wind gusts of up to 280 km at the time when it touched down Thursday night after killing three people in the island of Comoros.

The wind speed has since declined with an average force of 100 to 120 km / h, although it is still causing damage, said Friday the South African Meteorological Service (SAWS).

It was the most powerful storm ever recorded on the northern coast of Mozambique. It occurred just six weeks after Cyclone Idai pbaded through the impoverished country, causing devastating floods and killing more than 1,000 people across South Africa.

Hurricane Kenneth is expected to weaken on Saturday and Sunday as he moves into southern Tanzania, still causing flooding, the SAWS said.

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The World Food Program (WFP) warned that Kenneth could dump up to 600 mm of rain over the region in the next 10 days, double what Cyclone Idai brought.

A woman in the port city of Pemba died after being hit by a falling tree, said the Cabo Delgado Emergency Operations Committee (COE) in a statement, while another person had been injured.

In rural areas outside Pemba, many houses are made of mud. In the main city of Ibo Island, 90% of the homes were destroyed, officials said. About 15,000 people were outside or in "overcrowded" shelters and there was a need for tents, food and water, they said.

A large number of homes and some infrastructure have also been destroyed in Macomia, a continental district adjacent to Ibo.

A local group, the Association of Friends of Pemba, had previously indicated that they could not reach the Muidumbe people, a district further inland.

Mark Lowbad, UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, warned that the storm may require another major humanitarian operation in Mozambique.

"Hurricane Kenneth marks the first time two cyclones landed in Mozambique in the same season, further highlighting the government's limited resources," he said in a statement.

Flood warnings

Shaquila Alberto, owner of the Messano Flower Lodge, located beachfront in Macomia, said that there were a lot of fallen trees and that in rural areas, the homes of these people had been damaged. Some neighboring areas of Pemba did not have electricity.

"Even my workers, they said that the roof and everything had fallen," she said by phone.

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Further south, in Pemba, Elton Ernesto, receptionist at the Raphael hotel, said that there were fallen trees but that there was not too much damage. The hotel was supplied with water and water, he said, while the phones were ringing in the background. "The rain has stopped," he added.

However, Michael Charles, an officer with the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), said the heavy rains in the coming days could cause a "second wave of destruction" in the form of 39; flooding.

"The houses are not all solid and the topography is very sandy," said Charles.

In the days following Hurricane Idai, heavy rains in the interior pushed the rivers to overflow, submerging entire villages, cutting off areas and ruining crops. It was feared that the same thing would happen again in northern Mozambique.

Before Kenneth hit, the government and aid workers moved about 30,000 people to safer buildings such as schools. The authorities, however, reported that nearly 680,000 people were on their way to the storm.